Until 2015, the relevant legislation provided for the provision of water and wastewater services by local authorities in Ireland, with domestic usage funded indirectly through central taxation (including motor taxation), and non-domestic usage funded via local authority rates.

[21] Water shortages have left some larger urban areas – particularly Dublin – with supply issues during prolonged dry spells.

[citation needed] It also noted that it would take at least a decade to build the proposed new source,[23] with a 2007 report suggesting a lengthy pipeline to Dublin from Lough Derg and the Shannon.

[25] The newly created company effectively took on the existing local authority employees and water management facilities, pipes and infrastructure.

[19] Group water schemes are found in rural areas and are outside the scope of the centralised public mains systems.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), while "many have taken the quality of drinking water in Ireland for granted in the past, this can no longer be the case".

[32] On 14 November 2002, authorities in Ireland were cited by the European Court of Justice over the microbiological contamination of hundreds of public and private water supplies.

[35] Cryptosporidium contamination risk led to "boil notices" remaining in place in parts of County Roscommon for approximately six-years from 2009 to 2015.

[39] In October 2009, the European Court of Justice ruled against Ireland regarding septic tanks and other on-site wastewater treatment systems.

[citation needed] It deemed Ireland non-compliant with Articles 4 and 8 of the Waste Directive in relation to domestic wastewaters disposed of in the countryside.

Central to ending the case against Ireland was establishing a national inspection plan for domestic wastewater treatment systems, and in 2012, the government passed the Water Services (Amendment) Act 2012.

In 2013, €326 million was allocated by the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government for infrastructural spending on water,[4] corresponding to €71 per capita.

As part of a Programme of Assistance agreed with the EC-ECB-IMF 'troika' in November 2010, the Fianna Fáil-Green Party government committed to introducing domestic water charges in 2012/2013.

One month before the government's agreement with the troika, the administration's 'National Recovery Plan 2010–2014' stated that metering would form part of charges and be introduced by 2014.

New wastewater treatment plants were built in Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway between 2000 and 2011, generating additional capacity equivalent to the needs of a population of 3.96 million.

Over the same period, drinking water treatment capacity has been increased by an amount sufficient to meet the needs of a population equivalent of 1.4 million people.

Funding for maintaining and improving the water supply and sanitation infrastructure comes from the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government.

Group water schemes are also entitled to technical and grant assistance for any upgrading works that may need to be carried out.

Leakage levels in Ireland currently stand at 41%, with considerable variation between local authorities, in part explained by corrosion of antiquated pipes.

The report noted that the poor quality of data and the low level of consumer metering limited the reliability of their figures.

[45] Domestic rates, which financed the cost of water services, were abolished for the first time by a Fianna Fáil government following the 1977 general election.

[46] However, in 1983 the then Fine Gael-Labour government decided to cut this grant and passed legislation to allow councils to levy service charges.

[46] On 19 December 1996, on the eve of general elections, the Minister for the Environment Brendan Howlin from the Labour Party of the Rainbow Government of Fine Gael–Labour Party–Democratic Left announced that the water charge was going to be replaced by a new system in which motor tax collected in each area would be the source for local council funding.

Domestic water charges in Ireland were thus prohibited under the Local Government (Financial Provisions) Act 1997, passed in May 1997 shortly before the June 1997 general elections in which Fine Gael lost to Fianna Fáil under Bertie Ahern.

[49] The Water Services Bill 2003 was presented to the Oireachtas by then Environment Minister, Martin Cullen of Fianna Fáil.

The bill was designed to consolidate Ireland's existing body of 15 different enactments into a single act, and to transpose EU water legislation.

"[50] In September 2004 Cullen's successor, Environment Minister Dick Roche, also of Fianna Fáil, defended the proposed bill in Dáil Éireann.

The Minister said there were other ways of tackling potential shortages which have already left some larger urban areas – particularly Dublin – struggling to meet demand during prolonged dry spells.

[54] In January 2012, the Minister of Environment, Phil Hogan, announced a six-week consultation on a planned fundamental reform of the water sector.

[25] The newly created company took on the existing local authority employees and water management facilities, pipes and infrastructure.