The Longford water treatment plant behind a boil water notice affecting over 17,000 people is producing safe water.
That's the verdict of an audit carried out by the Environmental Protection Agency at the Lough Forbes Water Treatment plant yesterday.
Large parts of the county have been under a boil water notice since the start fo the month after the crypto-sporidium barrier at the plant was compromised.
While the plant is producing clean drinking water, further controls are needed on filter operations to ensure that the plant consistently meets the requiements for safe water.
The official findings of the audit will be presented to Irish Water and Longford County Council within a month, with further improvement measures identified for the plants operations.
In a statement to Shannonside FM news, Irish Water says that the EPA does not have a statutory role in the decision to impose or lift a Boil Water Notice.
It says that it is not possible to indicate how long the Boil Water Notice will remain in place but every effort is being made to resolve the issues at the plant with a view to lifting the Boil Water Notice as quickly and as safely as possible.
Local TD Joe Flaherty says he's hopeful the situation will be rectified before Christmas
