Much tougher legislation designed to ensure that drinking-water quality in rural areas will meet EU standards is to be introduced by the Minister for the Environment.
Mr Dempsey made the pledge at a function in Dublin yesterday when he announced a new grants scheme for private group water supplies, in what he described as "the most significant news for the sector for 40 years".
He said the latest subsidies, covering up to 85 per cent of the capital cost, would enable "quality-deficient" group schemes in upgrading their networks and treatment systems, which have been criticised in a succession of official reports.
Grants covering the full cost of disinfection and filtration equipment for sub-standard water schemes also form part of the package, so there would no longer be any excuse for "not confronting and solving the quality problem once and for all".
Mr Dempsey warned that substandard water supplies "could not be tolerated in this day and age", and it would be up to the group water sector itself to play its part in ending this problem, aided by the new grants scheme.
"To those that may be less receptive, all I will say is: shape up or ship out. By ship out, I mean hand over responsibility to the local authority who will then have to do the job for you."
The Minister cited a contract, signed in his presence yesterday by 21 private group schemes from Roscommon and Generale des Eaux (Ireland) Ltd, as an example of public-private partnerships in action.
He said £420 million had been provided for rural water in the National Development Plan over the next seven years to ensure that all rural consumers would have good-quality water supplies.
