Kilkenny households to escape water charges for another year
Kilkenny families and householders are to escape water charges for another year after Irish Water announced it has abandoned plans to charge for wastage in 2021.
The start date has now been earmarked for 2022, five years since legislation was brought in to allow the introduction of the controversial charge.
The scheme has been set by Irish Water’s inability to measure charges when not all homes are metered to gauge excess use.
Also, critics complain that tens of thousands of leaks have not been repaired yet.
“The water charges plan published by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities confirms that the earliest a bill for excess use will be issued is January 2022,” a statement said.
“Initial dates proposed were provisional as we are still working with the CRU and Government to finalise the approach.”
Excess use is defined as usage above the standard annual allowance of 213,000 litres, although households with more than four occupants can apply for a higher allowance. Exemption from the charge may be sought on medical grounds.
A charge of €3.70 has been approved by the CRU for every 1,000 litres of water used above the threshold subject to a cap of €500.
