Updated 13:30

Irish Water has extended its hosepipe ban in 16 counties until September 30th.

Following a meeting of the Irish Water Board this afternoon, the decision was taken to lift the ban for the north west region - while extending it in other areas.

The ban will remain in place in the Greater Dublin Area - which includes Dublin, Wicklow and Kildare - and in Louth, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath, Laois, Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary, Waterford, Wexford, Carlow and Kilkenny.

It has been lifted for the north west region - including Clare, Galway, Mayo, Sligo, Leitrim, Roscommon, Donegal, Longford, Cavan and Monaghan.

Conservation

In a statement this afternoon, the utility said it was appealing to the public to continue conserving water as supplies in rivers, lakes and ground water sources remain lower than normal.

It said the public effort to conserve water has had an effect - however, " further conservation is needed."

It said leakage repair teams are working across the country to find and fix leaks.

How much water do you think you use per day? We asked the public to see what they thought, and then told them the real number. #ConserveWater

— Irish Water (@IrishWater) August 27, 2018

"The first four weeks of August have seen some periods of rainfall nationally," the utility said in a statement.

"In the north and west of the country, this has resulted in increased flows in rivers [and] some recovery in lake levels.

"In these areas, in particular, Irish Water has been able to scale back the emergency measures put in place during July, with the majority of water supplies working normally."

"Very critical"

It said supply in the south of the country remains "very critical" - especially in Crok, Limerick and parts of Kerry.

"Hydrological reports show water levels to be stable or falling, despite recent rainfall," said the utility.

It said conservation by households in the Greater Dublin Area has managed to contain usage - however, levels in the Poulaphouca reservoir are still dropping, albeit at a slower rate.

Autumn demand

The utility said there is now a reasonable prospect it will be able to meet the region's demand throughout the autumn, "with a continued conservation effort."

It warned that if September and October prove to be unusually dry, the region will be faced with minimum reserve levels.

"At this stage, levels will be at historic low levels going into the winter," said the utility. "We will be anxiously watching the lake recovery to ensure that we enter 2019 with a full reserve."

"Given the critical reliance of over 1.6 million people and the region’s businesses on these resources, we believe that the urgent focus on water conservation will be needed through the coming months."

The Water Conservation Order bans the use of water drawn through a hosepipe or similar apparatus for a range of purposes.

These include: 

• Watering a garden
• Cleaning a private motor-vehicle using a domestic hosepipe
• Cleaning a private leisure boat using a hosepipe
• Filling or maintaining a domestic swimming or paddling pool - except when using a watering can 
• Filling or maintaining a domestic pond using a hosepipe - excluding fish ponds
• Filling or maintaining a domestic ornamental fountain 
• Use of water for filling or replenishing an artificial pond, lake or similar application - excluding fish ponds.

Anyone found to be in breach of the ban faces a potential prosecution or €125 fine.