Meath among first counties to get water meters

The installation by Irish Water of water meters at 51,000 County Meath homes is to start in the middle of September, Meath County Council said this week.
A total of 83 per cent of homes already have been surveyed in advance of the start date for installation and Irish Water officials will meet with county council staff in August to arrange a work schedule.
Meters will be installed in the Co Kildare towns of Maynooth, Celbridge and Leixlip in August and this will be followed by installations in Meath, Kerry and Wexford.
It will cost a total of €539 milion to put in 1.05 million meters throughout the country, working out at an average €500 each. The work is being funded by the National Pension Reserve Fund.
While Irish Water will be the lead organisation in the installation project, its officials are working closely with Meath County Council’s water department in publicising aspects of the work and in disseminating information to consumers.
Meath will be the first county in the north-east to have the meters installed. A council spokesperson said that while the installation project will start up in mid-September, all householders will receive an information booklet by about the end of August.
The council said that it would not know which area of the county will first be targeted until a meeting takes place shortly between Irish Water officials and members of its own water department staff.
“We will be bringing that information to consumeers as soon as we have it,” the council spokesperson added.