Zero audits carried out by Carlow's local authority last year on private water supplies
According to a report published by the Environmental Protection Agency
There were zero audits carried out by Carlow's local authority last year on private water supplies serving 1,923 people in the county.
An EPA report on private water supplies in 2017 found that 11 local authorities had audited a total of 108 private supplies in their respective areas over the twelve months.
However in Carlow - where there are four private group schemes serving 1,851 people - there were no Boil Notices issued nor were there any directions given.
There are also six small private water supplies serving 72 people in the Dolmen County.
The report states: "Many private supplies are not on the local authorities’ register and those that are registered are not monitored sufficiently, to ensure safe drinking water.
"Local authorities have a responsibility to audit private supplies to check they are operating correctly.
"At the start of every year, the local authority should create a risk-based audit plan listing the supplies they plan to audit that year.
"The supplies should be chosen based on the level of risk to the supply. An example of risk would be if the supply has a boil water notice in place or has had several E. coli failures."