• Wastewater Spills including sewage spills by council area or constituency area, 
• locations of the 50 Storm Overflows that release the most sewage annually, including frequency of spill, estimated volume spilled annually, location of spill, 
• quantity of wastewater spills to River Foyle in Derry from Storm Overflows, 
• quantity released annually into the River Foyle, 
• quantity released annually from pipes within 10 miles of Castlerock and Portstewart and Portrush beaches, 
• quantity released annually from pipes in Coleraine into the River Bann and 
• most up to date estimate for what is released into Lough Neagh on an annual basis.

Drainage Area Studies - Which drainage area studies are still missing and how many are complete and how many are still being worked on?

Tonnage of waste per year since 2002 coming from home-owned septic tanks.

River Faughan Water Quality Information about water quality monitoring for the number of days NI Water recorded “hazing” in the River Faughan between April and October in both 2019 and 2020.

• Number across Northern Ireland and within each council area? 
• Which are in need of the most significant upgrades and why. 
• How much needs to be spent in each city/area? 
• Are there any areas where new water treatment works need to be built and if so, can you explain why and what impact it is having that there is none. 
• Are there any areas which are not connected into the sewage network and water treatment works and if so, what are these locations? 
• What happens if an area is not connected to waste water treatment works?
• In what areas is poor water infrastructure having the greatest impact on house building? 
• Can you put any figures to that in terms of projects where objections had to be put forward because the water infrastructure could not cope with housing units being built? 
• What happens if hundreds of houses are built in an area where the wastewater infrastructure is already under pressure? 
• Can and are housing projects approved even if NI Water makes strong objections?

Water and Wastewater Treatment Works

• How much wastewater your Newry treatment works is required to treat, as stipulated in its permit.
• How much is actually treated. Please express this in whatever manner it is recorded by NI Water (FFT or other).
• Please also express the amount treated as a proportion of what is required to be treated. i.e. Newry treats 50% of the amount of wastewater it is required to treat. Please communicate it in a way that it would be easy for a non-specialist to understand.

Newry Wastewater Treatment Works

Number of planning applications for which NI Water has recommended refusal since 2018 on the basis of insufficient wastewater infrastructure and on the basis that there is not enough capacity in the storm overflow system.

Planning applications for which NI Water has recommended refusal since 2018

• Do discharges via the sewage system at Antrim Area Hospital drain solely to the Antrim Wastewater Treatment Works?
• Is the waste sludge from Antrim Wastewater Treatment Works sent for incineration or repurposed for agricultural use?
• Is some of the wastewater from Antrim Wastewater Treatment Works used for irrigation or does it all flow directly into Lough Neagh?
• What is the flow rate of wastewater from Antrim Wastewater Treatment Works into Lough Neagh?
• Are NI Water or NI Water contractors aware of any wastewater distribution models for the dispersion of wastewater in Lough Neagh?
• What is the daily dry weather flow (DWF) rate through the Antrim Wastewater Treatment Works?

Wastewater Discharges to Antrim Wastewater Treatment Works

Since the start of the year how many cases of untreated sewage dischargement, leaking into the Foyle from NI Water infrastructure has there been?

Wastewater emissions to the River Foyle

• How many combined flow discharges points can overflow to waterways during heavy rainfall.
• Whether these overflows are monitored by volume; and or an event.
• The number of events; and / or volume at each overflow location in the last year.
• How many of these enter Lough Neagh and its catchment area directly; and / or by other means.
• The number of wastewater treatment facilities that can discharge directly; and indirectly into Lough Neagh or its catchment area and have breached discharge consent in the last 5 years; and the associated volume; and level above discharge parameters with each breach.
• Number of wastewater treatment facilities controlled by NI Water, broken down by discharge location, the average volume of discharge during normal conditions and heavy rainfall causing maximum flow; and how many of these discharge points can enter Lough Neagh directly; and / or by other means.

Information relating to wastewater discharges, their monitoring and specific queries about discharges into Lough Neagh

• A map of all Wastewater Treatment works (WWTWs) and Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) in the Lough Neagh catchment
• Lough Neagh WWTWs effluent data from these from 2015-present
• Lough Neagh WWTWs Population Equivalents
• WWTWs current Discharge Consents
• WWTWs age and date of last upgrade
• CSO data and/or CSO spill frequency from 2015-present
• Septic tank count and map of ST locations in Lough Neagh catchment

Lough Neagh Covering Letter

Lough Neagh Annex A  - WwTW and Consent Limits (.xls document)

Lough Neagh Annex C - Effluent Data 2015 to date (.xls document)

Please provide me with the following information for each NI Water WWTW which discharges into the hydrological catchment area of Lough Neagh.

• Name
• Location
• Maximum permitted flow capacity
• Type of treatment provided
• Maximum permitted concentration of Total Phosphorus in the treated effluent
• Extent of current compliance with the maximum permitted operational limits
• Presence in the WWTW or in its vicinity of any Combined Storm Overflows (CSO)
• Location and maximum permitted capacity of any CSOs which are present.

NI Water’s Wastewater Infrastructure at Lough Neagh

How many Unsatisfactory Intermittent Discharges (UIDs) have taken place in the Portrush area in the last five years.

Storm Overflows in the Portrush area

• The volume, in tonnes, of sewage/wastewater that has been discharged into the Lough Erne system from January 1, 2024, to July 25, 2024, from both Wastewater Treatment Works (WWTW) and Combined Sewer Overflows (CSO). Please provide the information in a table format, detailing:
  • Location
  • Spill frequency (since January 1, 2024)
  • Spill volume (tonnes, since January 1, 2024)
• Any photographic or video evidence of overflows/discharges at Enniskillen DA Wastewater Treatment Works (WWTW) and Combined Sewer Overflows (CSO) from January 1, 2024, to July 25, 2024. This should include:
  • Photographs or videos taken by NI Water staff for the purposes of record-keeping or incident reporting.
• The volume, in tonnes, of sewage/wastewater that has been discharged into the Lough Erne system from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2024, from both Wastewater Treatment Works (WWTW) and Combined Sewer Overflows (CSO) to include:
  • Location
  • Spill frequency (from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2024)
  • Spill volume (tonnes, from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2024)
• Any photographic or video evidence of overflows/discharges at Enniskillen DA Wastewater Treatment Works (WwTW) and Combined Sewer Overflows (CSO) from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2024, to include photographs or videos taken by NI Water staff for the purposes of record-keeping or incident reporting.

Wastewater Emissions to Lough Erne

• Please could you send me the spreadsheet that is downloadable from this page called Modelled Spills May 2024 but include the lat and long of each of the CSOs on the list?
• Please could you also confirm that this is a comprehensive list of all CSOs and emergency overflows? If not, please could they be added, even if they have not spilled. All with lat and long.
• Please could you also add all wastewater treatment works, their names and lat and long.

Storm Overflow Spreadsheet

Please send me any determinations made of the phosphorus content of the flows of sludge and of the flows of the incineration residues.

Phosphorus content of Wastewater sludge flows & incineration residues

• A full list and quantities of all chemical substances used at water treatment works and other water processing facilities at Lough Neagh.
• The annual costs associated with each water processing facility at Lough Neagh during 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 up to the latest point possible.
• Levels of PFAS recorded at Lough Neagh testing points (please identify which testing points these are) during 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 up to the most recent possible point.
• Levels of PFAS recorded at testing points (please identify which testing points these are) during 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 up to the most recent possible point for the following rivers: (i) Lower Bann (ii) Upper Bann (iii) Blackwater estuary (iv) Sixemilewater estuary (v) Glenavy River (vi) Crumlin River (vii) Moyola River (viii) Ballinderry River (ix) River Main.

Water Treatment Chemicals & Costs for WTWs at Lough Neagh & levels of PFAs recorded at Lough Neagh

Figures for sewage related debris found at locations in Derry.

• How frequently and what type of water quality testing does NI Water perform to monitor the effects of their actions?
• How much (volume) and how often (number of occasions in 2024) has NI Water knowingly released sewerage into Belfast lough?

Wastewater emissions to Ballyholme Bay, Bangor

I attach the NI Water Consultation response for this scheme. NI Water have noted the following:

• Wastewater Treatment Capacity is not available at Greenisland WWTW
• Unsatisfactory Intermittent Discharge (UID) at Greenisland Two WWPS.

As part of a Freedom of Information Request can you please provide us with the following information: Greenisland WWTW

• A copy of the Discharge Consent issued to NIW by DAERA for the Greenisland WWTW
• Full Details of all recorded breaches of this discharge consent within the last 5 years (Dates, Durations and associated volumes)

Greenisland Two WWPS

• A copy of the Discharge Consent under Emergency Conditions issued to NIW by DAERA for the WWPS
• Full Details of all recorded breaches of this discharge consent within the last 5 years. (Dates, Durations and associated volumes)

Greenisland Wastewater Treatment Works & Greenisland Wastewater Pumping Station

• NI Water takes samples at its wastewater facilities. Please provide the results of this sampling, where applicable, for the past 2 years.
• It has sampled water from wastewater facilities both on an announced and on an unannounced basis. Did these parallel sampling regimes find any disparity between the results? What was the disparity?
• Please provide the results for both sampling conditions.
• Please provide any report, document or internal memo discussing the disparity between results arising from these different sampling regimes.
• What work, if any, has NNI Water undertaken examining the flow compliance of its wastewater treatment works?
• New legislation is due to be implemented which will require wastewater treatment works and CSOs to meet more stringent standards in order to be judged as compliant or acceptable. Has there been any analysis of the impact this will have on NI Water’s assets? If so, please provide
• Specifically, how many of NI Water’s wastewater assets are currently compliant? How many would comply with the more stringent standards due to be implemented.

Wastewater Flow Compliance & Wastewater sampling

A spreadsheet of all NI Water's active trade effluent consents to include name and location (latitude and longitude) of the Wastewater Treatment Works receiving the effluent, the name of the trader that holds the consent, the consent reference number, the type of business and what is consented to be discharged, substances and volumes. 

Trade Effluent Consent Register covering letter

Trade Effluent Consent Register (.xls document)
N.B. This dataset is accurate as of November 2024. Should you require access to a more up-to-date version, please contact imu@niwater.com

• What are the arrangements, since 2019, for the treatment of sewerage arising in Crumlin? Which WWTW or WWTWs treat this sewage and where are the corresponding outfalls to the environment? Please provide the coordinates of the installations and outfalls.
• Which of the NI Water sewage management installations (WWTW and CSO) which discharge into the catchment area of Lough Neagh have records at a minimum of weekly frequency of the outflow quantity and of the concentration in that outflow of Total Phosphorus? Please indicate the relevant recording frequency in each case. In cases in which such instrumentation will be in operation in the near future, please indicate the expected date from which such records will be kept.

Treatment of sewerage in Crumlin

Please could you send me a list of all the septic tanks in NI? Please include the post code and lat/long of each.

• How many sewage outlets run into Lough Neagh and their locations.
• The specific quantities of discharge from each outlet.

Storm Overflows to Lough Neagh

• What rate of flow the sewers and pumping stations should be capable of delivering to a WWTW, and what each WWTW must be capable of treating?
• What sewers and pumping stations are not capable of delivering this rate of flow to a WWTW, and which WWTW are not capable of treating this rate of flow.
• All data held by NI Water in relation to the above.
• Public money has been used by NI Water to carry out a regime of unannounced sampling. This data that has been collected using public money should be made available to the public. Please provide this information.

Covering letter
Flow Results

Information about sewage treatment sludge disposal in the Lough Neagh catchment area, to include details of the ways in which these sludges are disposed of and of the locations at which this disposal occurs.

• Can you tell me what areas - Council areas - of Northern Ireland source drinking water from Lough Neagh?
• Can you say how often this drinking water is tested for safety?

Water Source by Council area

• Water quality data for tributaries to the lough, ideally sampled within 1km of the lough.
• WFD physico-chemical parameters: temperature, dissolved oxygen (mg/l and %), pH, orthophosphate, total phosphorus, nitrate, alkalinity, suspended solids.
• In-lake water quality data. WFD physico-chemical parameters: temperature, dissolved oxygen (mg/l and %), pH, orthophosphate, total phosphorus, nitrate, chlorophyll, alkalinity, suspended solids/turbidity, salinity, hardness (mg/l of CaCO3), depth, conductivity.
• Algae species/ cyanobacteria species
• In-lake depth profiles (temperature/dissolved oxygen).
• Lake levels for Lough Neagh
• Direction of flow of water within the lake, including near bed flow.
• Any in-lake sediment quality data - phosphorus and nitrogen.
• Distribution of high-level substrates (e.g., rock, sand, clay) in lake, ideally in the form of a shapefile or map. Otherwise point data, or similar.
• Weather data, ideally recorded within 1km of the lough (temperature/rainfall/wind speed)
• Presence and abundance of zebra mussels in lake.
• Locations of any anthropogenic activity e.g., recreational boating and fishing, and the level of activity. Ideally heat maps. Otherwise point data, or similar.

Data relating to Lough Neagh

Real-world data for the different concentrations (µg/L) of these cyanobacteria and others in the water treatment sites (Dunore Point, Moyola, Forked Bridge and Castor Bay) at Lough Neagh.

Water quality results for the Gulladuff / Knockloughrim area.

Internal Review of 2425285 i.e. data not disclosed relating to Lough Neagh.

Covering Letter

Results Annex (.xls document)

Details of NI Water’s testing methods and proof that NI Water’s test samples from the last 4 weeks are in fact safe to consume under Article 295 of the Water and Sewerage Services (NI) Order 2006.

Copies of all with emails, letters, memos, briefing documents and mobile phone communications held by NI Water between June 2024 and September 2024 (or the longest time period possible to comply with cost and time exemptions), that make reference to the issue of water quality in parts of Mid Ulster.

Data regarding water treatment dosing, phosphorous and/or phosphate measured at the consumers tap and leakage figures.

• Is the inability to meet flow compliance at WWTW endemic across NI?
• What percentage of WWTW in Northern Ireland are unable to meet flow compliance?
• Dry Spilling from CSO's and Emergency CSO's, what percentage of these storm overflows are dry spilling in Northern Ireland?
• What is the effect of the SORPI with NIEA and the flow compliance breaches, dry spilling and WWTW breaches of UWWTD in terms of regulation?

Wastewater Flow Compliance and Storm Overflows