Blennerville Water Mains Replacement
National Leakage Reduction Programme
Uisce Éireann, in partnership with Kerry County Council, has replaced problematic water mains in Tralee to improve water quality and security of supply.
Uisce Éireann has invested over 500 million between 2017 2021 to reduce leakage and replace old pipes on the public water network. The benefits of this programme are:
- Replacing old pipes to reduce drinking water lost by leakage
- Fixing leaks to reduce disruption from bursts and outages
- Improving water quality
- Delivering savings on operation and maintenance of the network
Details of the project
The works involved the replacement of over 250 metres of problematic water mains with polyethylene (plastic) pipes. The programme to replace the water mains on the Blennerville Road commenced in mid-June 2021. These works were carried out as part of Uisce Éireann's National Leakage Reduction Programme.
The section of works took place on the Tralee to Blennerville/Dingle Road (N86) from the junction with the Canal New Road to the Marina Hotel. The works also involved laying new water service connections from the public water main in the road to customers' property boundaries and connecting it to the customers' water supply.
The works were carried out on behalf of Uisce Éireann by Ward and Burke Construction and were completed within 3 weeks.
What are the benefits of the works?
The benefits of the leakage reduction works include:
• Improved Water Quality - Removing existing old cast iron and lead from the public water network and replacing them with new pipes will reduce the risk of contamination.
• A Reliable Water Supply - Replacement of water mains and service connections will reduce the instances of bursts and water outages and will ensure a reliable supply of water to customers and local businesses in the area.
• Reduced Leaks - Replacement of water mains and service connections will eliminate existing leaks and reduce the amount of clean drinking water lost into the ground.
• Improved Operation and Maintenance - These works will deliver cost savings by providing improved water network operation that will require less maintenance in the future.
Will customers be affected by the works?
Traffic management in the form of stop go will be in place during this time. Local and emergency traffic will be maintained at all times.
The works will be carried out by directional drilling via access pits in order to reduce disruption.
The works may involve some short-term water shut offs and the project team will ensure that customers are given a minimum of 48 hours' notice prior to any planned water shut offs.
We understand that this type of work can be inconvenient and works crews will make every effort to minimise any disruption these necessary works cause.
