Kildare landowners set to receive average €100k payments for water pipeline

Dozens of North Kildare landowners are set to receive an average of €100,000 for allowing a new water pipeline pass through their lands. 

The Water Supply Project Eastern and Midlands Region will be one of the largest infrastructure projects in the history of the State. 

It will take water from the lower river Shannon at the Parteen Basin in Co Tipperary, treat it at a plant in nearby Birdhill, and pipe it 170km to Peamount on the Kildare / Dublin border. 

The route of the pipeline passes through areas of North Kildare. 

A total of around 500 landowners will be impacted along the total distance of the project. The average payment is believed to be around €100,000.

The Irish Farmers Association (IFA) and the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association (ICMSA) reached agreement with Uisce Ėireann (UE) on a voluntary land and wayleave package for farmers and landowners along the route of the pipeline for the Water Supply Project Eastern and Midlands Region (WSP).

The package contains four main elements - an early ‘sign-on’ payment; a wayleave payment; a crop loss and disturbance payment; and an WSP Special Goodwill payment. There are additional payments in the package for farmers who will have ancillary apparatus such as air valves, line valves, wash-out chambers and lay-bys on their land. 

Farmers have the option of accepting this offer under the negotiated voluntary wayleave agreement with Uisce Ėireann, or pursuing their claim through the relevant statutory processes.

The deadline date for the return of consent forms to UE has been extended to October 7 to provide more time for farmers and landowners to consider the package and get the necessary advice.

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Currently, there is just one source to supply 85% of the water for the Greater Dublin Area – the River Liffey.

Uisce Eireann believes that this dependence on the Liffey (and the two main treatment plants of Ballymore Eustace and Leixlip) results in a serious vulnerability to risks such as prolonged drought and/or contamination.

Furthermore, economic growth, population growth including the demand for housing and the impact of climate change means that the region will need 34% more water by 2044 than is available today. 

Uisce Eireann said: "The Water Supply Project Eastern and Midlands Region will be  critical national infrastructure project, it will have capacity to support water supply needs for up to 50% of the population.

"It will bring treated water from the Parteen Basin to Peamount in Dublin with the capacity for offtakes along the route in Tipperary, Offaly and Westmeath. It will also enable supplies serving Dublin to be redirected back locally in Carlow, Wicklow, Meath and Louth."

During the negotiations which involved over 25 meetings, the IFA and ICMSA expressed concerns about the implications for farmers if there are long delays to the planning or with the pipeline being completed. The package provides for inflation with CPI indexation for the payments which are not made upfront such as the crop loss and disturbance payments and also provides for CPI Indexation for the WSP goodwill payment from 2030.

While farmers along the route will ultimately have a 20m wide wayleave corridor on their land, a 50m wide corridor will be required during the construction phase. During pre-planning and until the project is complete, the full 50m wide corridor will be subject to the wayleave development restrictions. However, outside of the construction period, normal agriculture use of the corridor will not be affected.

Considering the significant delays in completing major state infrastructure projects, there is a real concern that farmers could be left in limbo for a long time.

Given the availability of the permanent wayleave payment upfront for farmers under the package and the nature of the wayleave and easement required at an early stage by UE, the issue of protecting farmers from potential significant delays with planning or construction remained unresolved in the negotiations.

However, the IFA and ICMSA said they will continue to work with UE for the duration of this project in order to protect the interests of farmers if this project is unduly delayed.

The IFA and ICMSA also raised the issue of the potential for TB disease breakdowns due to wildlife displacement during construction. A working group including the IFA and ICMSA along with the Department of Agriculture will be established to plan around this.

The package specifies that the crop loss and disturbance payment is an advance payment and UE will cover all loss of earnings, other damages and disturbance incurred when they are computed by an appointed agronomist.

The IFA and ICMSA said that like any complex negotiation, they had not secured everything they sought in the negotiations. However, on balance the compensation and goodwill payments provide a reasonable package for farmers and they should consider the deal carefully with their relevant advisers.

The IFA and ICMSA said they negotiated very hard over a number of months and the negotiating teams had access to appropriate professional and legal advice. UE has agreed to contribute towards the costs of the IFA and ICMSA in engaging these experts.

As part of the farmer/landowner package, there is also a comprehensive Code of Practice and the Uisce Ėireann Deed of Wayleave and Easement, which contains a loss of development clause. The package also provides for the costs associated with the farmers/landowners receiving independent legal advice on the Deed of Wayleave and Easement and associated legal issues.