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Wastewater legislation for single houses

Act published to regulate domestic wastewater treatment systems

This is an image of a Wastewater treatment system in relation to a house and percolation system

The Department of Environment, Community and Local Government (DoECLG) has published the Water Services (Amendment) Act 2012 to regulate wastewater discharges from all homes that are not connected to the public sewer network.

This is as a result of a European Court of Justice (ECJ) judgment made against Ireland in 2009 (Case C-188/08) in relation to the management of domestic wastewater treatment systems.

What does the new legislation mean?

This ruling has implications for some 440,000 wastewater treatment systems serving single houses in Ireland. The Water Services (Amendment) Act 2012 includes registration and inspection arrangements. This means that all on-site septic tank systems or domestic wastewater treatment systems will have to be registered.  The local authorities will establish and maintain a registration system. The Minister has indicated  that this will be available from 31st March 2012.

Has the legislation been fully enacted?

The Act has now been published but a commencement order has not been made. The Minister may make regulations regarding the appointment of inspectors, performance standards and the operation and maintenance of domestic wastewater treatment systems.

What role will the EPA play?

The EPA will be responsible for the development of a national inspection plan. The EPA will use a risk-based approach to prioritise areas of higher risk to human health and water quality. 

This approach will assign resources to where they are needed and deliver the best outcome for public health and the environment cost effectively.  More details on the proposed national inspection plan will be made available as soon as it is developed.

The EPA will have a supervisory role in relation to each local authority's performance of its functions.  It also will establish and maintain a register of inspectors.

Where can I find out more?

DoECLG have more information about the Act on their website. We have also produced a list of Frequently Asked Questions on the latest information available on the Act.

There are a number of things you can do to ensure that your septic tank or domestic wastewater treatment system is working properly.