A HOSEPIPE BAN on 30 water supplies in West Cork has commenced in order to safeguard water supplies for essential purposes.

Irish Water implemented the ban at midnight, following a long period of dry weather combined with a large surge in demand, which has put supplies under severe stress. 

People are not allowed to use their water supply for garden hoses or other non-essential uses until Tuesday, 26 September.

The ban will specifically prohibit the use of a hosepipe for cleaning cars, filling swimming pools or ponds and watering plants.

Irish Water said that since November of last year, rainfall in West Cork has been below average for every month except for June and that water supplies need time to replenish, which will take six to eight weeks of rainfall.

Met Éireann is forecasting a further spell of dry, warm weather for the next two weeks, which will increase the pressure on already depleted water supplies.

Announcing the ban yesterday, Regional Asset Operations Manager at Irish Water, Margaret Attridge said:

“Such weather makes the use of hoses more likely for gardening, leisure and other purposes. However, using a hosepipe for one hour is the equivalent of the daily water usage of an average family and this is generally a non-essential use of water.”

“The introduction of this Order follows a series of measures that Irish Water has put in place to safeguard supplies over the summer, including tankering water to reservoirs, nightime shut offs in some areas, pressure management and a public information campaign aimed at raising awareness of the importance of water conservation year-round.”