Fianna Fáil senator and Newbridge resident Fiona O’Loughlin has raised in the Seanad the ongoing issue of water quality following a “frustrating” period of water issues.

The Kildare politician said she has been dealing with several water quality issues around south Kildare of late.

“It is regrettable that we cannot have a back-and-forth debate in the Oireachtas when dealing with Irish Water, to really tease out issues and flag problems,” she remarked. “There have been repeat issues of bad discolouration, particularly in areas such as Drumsu in Rathangan. There are ongoing water pressure problems around the Baroda area of Newbridge.

“In addition, in the last few weeks, in the town of Newbridge and surrounding areas in Co Kildare, many residents were forced to buy bottled water due to an overpowering smell of earth and must in the tap water.”

Senator O’Loughlin said she has been liaising with Irish Water on the issue, adding that it confirmed recently that specialist results received following the ongoing testing of the raw water indicated the presence of low levels of a substance called geosmin.

“Irish Water said it is not harmful, but it is absolutely not acceptable to have water of such low quality flowing out of the taps in a major town like Newbridge,” she stated. “Water needs to do more in terms of contingency planning, in my view, and to have a plan B in areas where our major water supply is compromised.”