A major €22 million project to upgrade the water supply in North Dublin has reached completion.

This scheme improved the supply for almost 21,000 homes and businesses across Malahide, Howth, Swords, Balbriggan and surrounding areas.

Irish Water completed the project in partnership with Dublin City Council and Fingal County Council, enabling much needed social and economic growth and development in Fingal, which has seen significant population growth in recent years.

In addition, as part of Irish Water's commitment to improving energy efficiency and reducing its carbon footprint, the new infrastructure in Howth has also achieved substantial energy savings. Since the new infrastructure was commissioned in October 2021, it has achieved an estimated reduction in energy consumption in excess of 60%, which equates to annual energy savings of over 500,000 kilowatt-hours per year.

The project involved the construction of almost 15km of new trunk water mains in the Howth, Balbriggan Swords and Malahide areas including three tunnelled crossings underneath the Howth DART Line. Upgrades to modernise and improve the pumping stations at Corr Bridge and Dungriffen Reservoir were also carried out as well as substantial modifications works to the existing water supply infrastructure to the Howth peninsula.

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Speaking on the importance of the project, Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and local TD for Fingal, Darragh O'Brien said: "This project is critical, not only to the health and wellbeing of the communities across Howth, Malahide, Portmarnock, Swords and Balbriggan, but also to the development of Fingal by enabling us to meet our commitments under Housing for All, to create more businesses and attract more investment. It represents a significant milestone in the provision of a more secure and resilient water supply for North County Dublin.

"Congratulations to Irish Water and all their partners for delivering this landmark project and also for their commitment to climate action and sustainability, achieving impressive results in reducing their carbon footprint with these upgrades."

William Mc Knight, Irish Water Delivery Lead, commented: "Since the beginning of construction three years ago, the project team led by Joseph Mernagh worked hard to ensure the project was, despite the challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Delivering upgrades of this magnitude while maintaining water supplies to the communities where the upgrades were underway is a testament to the dedication and collaboration between Irish Water and our partners.

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank our operations colleagues in Fingal County Council and Dublin City Council, and our Contractor John Craddock Ltd., who worked closely and collaboratively with our employer representative Nicholas O'Dwyer Ltd. to ensure this complex project was completed on schedule and within budget, with minimal impacts to local road users."

Caroline McKay, Fingal County Council’s Operations Area Engineer, added: "This important water project will benefit so many communities across Fingal. The existing infrastructure which included cast iron water mains laid in Howth c.1945 supplying water to storage reservoirs at Howth, Balbriggan and Malahide had inadequate capacities to meet existing peak demands resulting in occasional low pressure and were unable to provide for future growth in demand. We have addressed these issues by replacing them with new, larger and resilient pipes which are built to last for generations. I thoroughly enjoyed working on this collaborative project with all the team and making it such a success, ensuring an improved and reliable water supply across this expansive area."

John Craddock Limited delivered these works on behalf of Irish Water, in partnership with Fingal County Council and Dublin City Council, in line with government and HSE COVID-19 protocols.