By Dan Walsh
Irish Water, working in partnership with Wexford County Council, is replacing ageing backyard water mains and providing new service connections for customers in St. John’s Villas in Enniscorthy.
The project, which commences this week, involves the replacement of water connections, typically made of iron or lead, that were installed in the back gardens of some older housing estates. The pipework, due to age and deteriorating condition, are a significant source of leakage and reduced levels of service.
Backyard services are usually shared, running through several neighbouring properties, making it difficult to detect and repair leaks. Since all properties share a connection, leaks and bursts affect all properties; usually resulting in low pressure.
These works in St. John’s Villas, Enniscorthy also involve the decommissioning of ageing back yard water mains and the delivery of over 270 metres of new water mains constructed along the public road.
Outlining the benefits the Backyard Service Replacement Project will bring, Joe Carroll from Irish Water, explained: “Replacing these old and problematic pipes on St. John’s Villas will reduce the drinking water lost by leakage and will bring an all-round improvement to water quality for the local community.
Mr Carroll added: “In partnership with Shareridge Ltd and Wexford County Council, we have been engaging with the residents and aim to complete the works with as little disruption as possible. However, the works may involve some short-term water outages, but our project team will ensure that customers are given a minimum of 48-hours’ notice prior to any planned water outages.
“Where watermains are being constructed, traffic management may be in place. Parking spaces may be temporarily closed in order to complete works. Local and emergency traffic will be maintained at all times.”
Irish Water’s customer care helpline is open 24/7 on 1800 278 278 and customers can also contact on Twitter @IWCare with any queries. For updates please visit the Water Supply Updates section of the Irish Water website or set your location on the website www.water.ie
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