Kilrickle – the Galway village without drinking water

Many households are dreading the new water charges – but one East Galway village would love to be in a position to pay them.

Residents and businesses in Kilrickle say they would have no difficulty paying water charges . . . if they were provided with a water supply in the first place.

Because the village is one of the very few in the country that does not have either a public or private water supply.

Now, local residents and businesses say that a water charge would be acceptable – if they were provided with a clean supply.

Local publican Dessie O’Brien said that it cost him around €1,000 a year to filter-clean the water he provides for his customers.

He collects rain water which he uses in his premises but the filtering of this water to his customers is proving hugely expensive.

“At the moment I would have no difficulty in paying €250 to the Government if they provided me with water in the morning.

“Recently I had a 21st birthday party in my pub and discovered that I had no water in my tanks to accommodate a funeral the following Monday.

“Fortunately, it poured rain in the meantime which meant that I could actually host the funeral party because, otherwise, my business would be in shreds”, Dessie O’Brien admitted.

Mr. O’Brien said that there was a business premises up for sale but it would be very difficult to sell it as it did not have a public water supply.

Residents in and around Kilrickle are one of the few villages in the country which does not have a piped water supply.  Collecting rainwater or boring wells is their only form of supply.

At one stage they were told that a pipe would be provided from Loughrea to the village at a cost to each of the 132 residents who are demanding a water supply.

But they have since learned that the pipe will only come to Kilmeen Cross (at the junction to the Portumna road) and this has not gone down very well.

The campaign to bring piped water to the village of Kilrickle has been ongoing for a quarter of a century and without success.

There have been announcements and promises of a public water supply being provided to the village and its 132 households but they have been let down on each occasion.

It is estimated that it will cost in the region of €2 million to provide Kilrickle with a water supply but the funding for such a project is not available.