‘A very good day for Nenagh’
The commencement of the long-awaited upgrade of Nenagh’s wastewater treatment plant paves the way for the town’s future growth, creating capacity for potentially 3,000 new homes.
Heralding what he described as a “very good day for Nenagh,” Minister for Housing, Local Government & Heritage James Browne turned the sod on the treatment plant last Friday. Uisce Éireann commenced its upgrade project at the Old Birr Road site just after Christmas. The move has freed up construction of hundreds of long-planned houses in Nenagh, including those at the Dromin Road and Tyone, while it is understood that dozens of new homes planned by Tipperary Co Council, which were held up pending the upgrade, can now proceed to construction.
And there was more good news last week when Minister Browne and local TD Ryan O’Meara confirmed that another long-awaited treatment plant upgrade, Cloughjordan, will be proceeding to planning in a matter of months. “I think it really shows the Government is backing Nenagh,” Minister Browne commented on Friday. “It sees Nenagh as key to future growth both in Tipperary and as part of the national programme as well.”
Delighted to have the Nenagh upgrade underway, the minister said he is cognisant of the need to upgrade treatment plants in several smaller towns and villages in the town’s hinterland.
CLOUGH ON ‘ACCELERATED PROGRAMME’
Among these, Minister Browne said he has been working closely with Deputy O’Meara on Cloughjordan, and that it would be next in line for treatment plant upgrade. “Cloughjordan is on an accelerated programme of delivery,” the minister said.
“It’s on the top of Uisce Éireann’s agenda here in Tipperary with Nenagh now up and moving.” He added that Nenagh’s plant upgrade does not have to be complete before work can start on Cloughjordan or any of the other surrounding villages awaiting upgrade.
“Cloughjordan is progressing at a rate that we’ve never seen before, which is really, really promising,” Deputy O’Meara said during the visit. “I am confident that we are going to have a planning application before the council in the next number of months.”
This he said would put paid to the protracted wastewater issue at Townfields estate while also opening up new private and social housing development for the village, including the development of serviced sites in the Eco Village.
“It is very promising and I have to acknowledge the minister for the amount of engagements we’ve had on the wastewater treatment plant there,” Deputy O’Meara said.
COMPLETION TIMEFRAME
However, Deputy Alan Kelly sounded alarm over the projected completion timeframe of Nenagh’s upgraded wastewater treatment plant, which is now stated as 2029. He said the documentation he was shown indicated a delivery date of 2027, and he questioned how the delay would augur for the delivery of future projects for Tipperary.
“That’s not acceptable,” Deputy Kelly said of the new timeframe. “I don’t want to be a downer on a good day, because this is very welcome investment in my home town. But Uisce Éireann have to be held accountable as to how something has slipped a couple of years.”
He added: “There’s other housing to be developed here and more housing on top of it, so I have to ask the question: ‘Will they be able to meet all of this?’ I daresay they better. But for future housing announcements after this – will they be able to meet them?”
Deputy Kelly said the likely reason for the delay is that the Nenagh project was “profiled”. “In other words, other projects were moved up in place, or else there was something to do with budgets. I can’t explain it.”
Asked about the completion timeframe, Minister Browne said his department is working on ways of delivering treatment plant upgrades more quickly “There’s always a kind of window for the completion of these projects because you can never be certain of what might happen in the interim,” he replied. “But I know that Uisce Éireann want to do this as quickly as possible and I know that if there’s any delay, Deputy Ryan O’Meara will certainly be on my case.”
‘HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY’
Deputy Kelly welcomed a Government move towards allowing private developers build or upgrade treatment plants, something that could speed up the delivery of greater capacity for the villages.
“I think they should be contracted out and if they can’t do them, basically get in companies and they sign off on them,” he said of the works required of Uisce Éireann for smaller settlements. “That’s the best way of dealing with them. If Uisce Éireann have the capacity, great, but if they don’t, hold their hands up. Honesty is the best policy here.”
Also welcoming the commencement of work at Nenagh’s wastewater treatment plant, Cathaoirleach of Tipperary Co Council John Carroll was similarly mindful of the needs of rural communities.
“For the smaller parishes throughout the county, the big challenge for all of us as public representatives going forward is that we don’t see the diminution of the parishes as we know it,” Cllr Carroll said. “The water treatment system for the smaller settlements is fundamental.”