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Free Water. Who are they kidding?

category galway | environment | opinion/analysis author Friday April 13, 2007 11:26author by Galway water crisis

Galway City Hall looks after the boys

Galway Spring Water get looked after by Galway City Hall. The people of Galway, having already lost their choice to drink tap water, now told they must drink Galway Spring water if they want to avail of the "buy one, get one free" offer.

The latest is that the City Hall and Galway Spring water have brought in a "buy one, get one free" scheme so people can get subsidised water. What a joke. Talk about looking after the boys. What if someone doesn't want Galway Spring Water? Is the rumour true that the CEO of Galway Spring water used to be a council official? Can anyone clarify this? Seemingly you can only avail of this offer if you buy the water in the supermarkets. How useful is that to people who live miles from their supermarket. Why should the supermarkets benefit and not the already hardpressed local shops?This subsidy should apply across the board. It is unbeliveable how stupid the council think local people are. This is not free water. This is looking after the big supermarkets and one water company. A group of angry Galway residents have come together to form a website for people to air their views. The website, www.myspace.com/galwaywatercrisis, has reported many hits since setting up last Sunday and are asking people to register with them with a view to forming a critical mass of people to protest. A public meeting will be called soon.

Related Link: http://www.myspace.com/galwaywatercrisis

Comments (10 of 10)

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author by Terencepublication date Fri Apr 13, 2007 11:49author address author phone

Yep, its a joke alright. From the first day of this crisis, Galway Co. Co. should have been bringing in tankers of water every day for free distribution and going around all the estates, towns and villages in the region with the times announced on the radio, in the local press and on their website.

And if I remember correctly a few years ago there was controversary over the building of housing estates along the shores of Lough Corrib and the matter was raised that this would inevitably end up contaminating the lake due to sewage along with the existing pressure for other sources. So it is now not very surprising that we now find that the lake is infested with Cryptosporidium.

Many will also remember a year or two back that Dick Roche gave a waiver permitting the building of hundreds of thousands of rural houses as part of their duty to govern on behalf of the building industry. If I remember correctly, the estimate for the total number of planned rural houses was well over 150,000 and we were given the sop that the children of farmers could not build on their own land, yet it turned out that of that figure only 50,000 were for such people in that category. Yes clearly something should have been done for them, but it would seem the rest were more at the speculative end and in all probability to be second homes.

We can be sure there will be more cases like the water contamination in Galway, but the tax payers will end up paying.

author by me - we the peoplepublication date Fri Apr 13, 2007 15:37author address author phone

I know a guy who has a fresh water well in the Burren and is willing to fill People's containers for a quarter of the price. He will give you a receipt if required and this can be submitted to the Council for reimbursement.

The crisis also gets solved immediatly.

author by Jim O'Sullivanpublication date Fri Apr 13, 2007 19:13author address author phone

Nobody who has watched the privatisation policy that is the anchor of all current government policy is one bit surprised that a major city has now found itself without a water supply on tap.
We need to understand, that like the Health service and all other vital services, this government has deliberately allowed them to rot on the vine and will in due course, propose privatisation as the solution. It's a tried and tested ploy. Privatisation however solves nothing. It only allows one small section of society to grab an unfair share of the national pie.
If the people fo Galway go out and vote for a FF/PD candidate in the next general election, then surely emigration must begin to look like an attractive option.

author by weskerpublication date Mon Apr 16, 2007 22:23author address author phone

If there was any street protest in galway I would definitly go to it, people need to be more annoyed about the water in galway and do something about it.

author by Galway water crisispublication date Tue Apr 17, 2007 01:36author address author phone

Public Meeting This Wednesday

Public Meeting this Wednesday (18th April) at 8 pm in the Warwick Hotel (In the Beo bar), Salthill.
The Agenda
1. To give the Galway public a forum to air their views
2. To organise a Public Protest
3. To show 'The Powers That Be' that the people of Galway will vote with their feet on this issue


www.indymedia.ie/article/82030

Related Link: http://www.myspace.com/galwaywatercrisis
author by john mcdermott - www.soldiersofdestiny.orgpublication date Wed Apr 18, 2007 10:37author address author phone

As long as farmer puppetmasters run this country by proxy ,and Fianna Fail (and Fine Gael) are their marionettes nothing will change. The non implementation of proper slurry and farm waste containment years ago is a scandal that citizens of no other nation in Europe would countenance.
Get them out.

Related Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Re_fbglV948
author by Weskerpublication date Fri Apr 20, 2007 11:57author address author phone

Hey, unfortunatley I wasnt up to date enough about the meeting on wednesday, and I only found about it today. Was there any date set for the street protest? If there is going to be a protest then were gonna have to get the numbers up and start putting flyers everywhere. Im pretty sure that everyone would want to go to this, its just a matter of organizing it well enough. Unfortunately I missed out on the Wednesday meeting because of the shortness of notice, hopefully there will be more notice and more information on the street protest soon. I cant imagine anyone not wanting to take to the streets about this.

author by Galway water crisispublication date Sat Apr 21, 2007 18:58author address author phone

There will be a protest at City Hall in Galway at 6 pm this Monday 23rd April. We appreciate this is short notice but we have to strike while the iron is hot. Bring drums, whistles, empty water bottles..etc. We are asking that as many people as possible come to this protest. Lets show Ireland, Europe and the world that Galway people will not take this debacle lying down!

Related Link: http://www.myspace.com/galwaywatercrisis
author by johnpublication date Sun Apr 22, 2007 11:39author address author phone

i would like to attend protest at city hall.having just moved to galway i am not sure where it is. i would have gone to meeting at hotel except i asked for information on its whereabouts on this site and for some reason that comment was deleted.

author by jcpublication date Sun Apr 22, 2007 16:52author address author phone

its on college road


http://www.indymedia.ie/article/81949

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