Islanders on Inis Oírr are being shipped water several times a day, even during this period of heavy rainfall across Ireland.
As The Sunday Independent reports, Uisce Éireann has not yet resolved the island’s water shortage issues.
The island co-op has sought a long-term solution for well over a decade, amid growing frustration over the apparent lack of a strategy and large expenditure by the State on short-term solutions.
The southernmost Aran island, which has a population of 340 people, has long suffered from shortages due to lack of groundwater sources.
For well over a decade, it has experienced regular droughts due to relatively low rainfall, and the difficulty of drilling wells that are not contaminated by seawater.
Visitor numbers can reach several thousand during the tourist season, which is now running well into October, and this has put a strain on existing supply.
A hydrogeological study conducted in 2015 proposed capturing excess winter rainfall to ease the summer shortages.
A plan was drawn up to install raw storage tanks, which would then require planning permission. Large areas of the Aran islands are protected under the EU Habitats Directive.
It is understood that Uisce Éireann and Galway County Council had sought land, and tendered for up to three storage tanks, but islanders then heard that this plan was abandoned on cost grounds.
Resident Paddy Crowe said while everyone is happy that water is being delivered, there is a question mark over a long term plan.
“Shipments are expensive, and wouldn’t money be better spent on a long-term cure?” he said.
Uisce Éireann will not divulge the cost of the shipments, stating that “this is commercially sensitive information”.
It said that specialised maintenance works to resolve an issue at the Inis Oírr water treatment plant are scheduled for the week after next, November 6th.
Read The Sunday Independent here