2 December 2002
WATER SERVICE TO INVEST £5.3 M IN NEWTOWNABBEY BOROUGH COUNCIL AREA
DRD Water Service needs to make a substantial investment in Northern Ireland’s water and sewerage infrastructure to comply with European Directives and meet increasing customer demands.
The announcement came from Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Angela Smith, MP, ahead of tonight’s Water Service meeting with Newtownabbey Borough Council at which Mr Bill Gowdy, Deputy Divisional Water Manager presented the Capital Works Programme planned for the next year.
The Minister said: "As Minister with responsibility for Regional Development I have been struck by the magnitude of the investment deficit facing Northern Ireland’s water and sewerage services.
Approximately £3 billion must be invested in these key services over the next 20 years to comply with increasingly rigorous European Directives on Water Quality, respond to increasing demand for water and sewerage services, safeguard public health and replace ageing infrastructure."
During the meeting with Newtownabbey Borough Council, Mr Bill Gowdy told Councillors that £5.3 million had been invested in water and sewerage projects in the Borough during the last year.
He also said that the pumping station and pumping main to serve the newly extended Ballywonard service reservoir was about to be brought into service and would ensure improved water pressures and integrity of supply in the area.
Mr Gowdy said: "The Greenisland Waste Water Treatment Works improvements are now substantially complete and will accommodate future development in the area and improve the quality of discharges from the works to Belfast Lough.
"A project to provide a trunk sewer from Ballyhenry to Monkstown to serve existing and proposed development is also substantially complete and a total of over £142,000 is also being spent on replacing and upgrading distribution watermains in the council area.
"Following the severe rainfall this year Water Service are carrying out a review of the Drainage Area Plan to determine if any short term remedial measures are feasible. Water Service are also participating in a DARD Rivers Agency led study to consider flooding problems that have occurred in the Whiteabbey Village Area. It is anticipated that some infrastructure improvements will be identified by the appropriate utility."
Concluding the content of the Capital Works Programme, Mr Gowdy said that Water Service would also be seeking to identify further improvements to the water distribution and sewer network in the Council area.
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