Into the future

Rural Water News Autumn 2006
Source runs dry for
County Cavan GWS
A County Cavan group
water scheme faced an
unprecedented crisis at the
height of the summer heatwave,
as the soaring
demand for water sorely
tested the capacity of their
source, which came close to
disappearing, as the lake
contracted into two ponds!
Only the determined efforts
of Mountain Lodge GWS
committee members averted
disaster. By diverting water
from neighbouring Lough
Asturall through a four-inch
main, they managed to slow
down the rapid fall in their
source at Lough Naglare.
Mountain Lodge has
expanded considerably in
recent years. This and the
location of a some leaks on
sections of the distributionnetwork
go some way
towards explaining the inability
of the source to cope.
Even so, there was surprise
at the rapid decline in water
levels and alarm at the longterm
threat posed by the
appearance of a large crack in
the dried-up bed of the lake
that threatened to push mud
into the only remaining deep
water area.
Clockwise top: Mountain Lodge
GWS chairperson, Eddie Martin
surveys Lough Naglare as it virtually
dried up at the height of the
July heatwave. The scheme averted
total disaster only by diverting
water from Loch Asturrall, more
than a mile distant. Even then, a
continuous supply through a four
inch pipe could scarcely match the
rate of water loss.
Right: Large cracks appeared in
the bed of the dried-up lough, as
sliding mud threatened its very
future as a viable source.
Below: A view from the pump
(installed last year). The abstraction
point is indicated by a red box,
only yards from the water’s edge.
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