Minister for the Environment John Gormley yesterday played down any expectation of an exemption for schools who are forced to pay water charges.
However, Green party TD Paul Gogarty yesterday said he believed the Government had the power to either abolish the charges or implement some form of free allowance for schools.
The issue of water charges for schools erupted into a political row as opposition parties accused the Government of doing nothing to help schools faced with water charges of up to €10,000. Under a European Commission directive, schools, along with businesses, hospitals and the farming community, are obliged to pay water charges.
There were indications in recent days that the commission would allow the Government to exempt schools, however, this later proved not to be the case.
Speaking in Bali, Mr Gormley warned that any special compromise for schools would inevitably lead to calls for charges to be lifted by others groups affected.
"I hope I can have discussions with the Minister for Education to discuss the matter in more detail. It's a difficult situation and I don't think it will be easy to solve," Mr Gormley told RTÉ's This Week programme.
Senior Government officials say the issue may ultimately only be resolved through securing more funding for schools to pay the charges, along with measures such as increased conservation.
Mr Gogarty, meanwhile, called on the Departments of Education, Environment and Finance to work together to find a solution.
"Some method of calculation needs to be worked out to ensure that schools receive a reasonable allocation of free water per child, to cater for basic needs, with a charge for any usage above that amount. This would encourage conservation and recognise the special case for schools," he said.
"Whether this mechanism involves the Department of Education compensating the schools for payments made or whether it is possible for the Department of the Environment to waive minimum usage charges for schools has yet to be determined. However the reality is that the schools cannot afford to pay such charges without making sacrifices in some other area."
Deputy Gogarty has called what he described as an "emergency meeting" of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Science, which he chairs, to examine possible solutions.
He said: "Schools are already facing huge financial pressures. Expecting them to pay for water will only increase the burden on the school management and parents alike . . . given that we are talking about the needs of over 750,000 children, treating schools like a commercial entity is not the way to go about it."
