Have you ever stopped to consider how vital a reliable water service is to life in rural Ireland?
The National Federation of Group Water Schemes (NFGWS) has launched a documentary on its history and the cooperative ethos that has driven the transformation of water services in rural Ireland.
In the lead-up to the Rural Water Services Conference on Thursday, September 12, the National Federation of Group Water Schemes (NFGWS) is launching its 25-year celebration film entitled ’25 years a Co-Op’.
The film tells the colourful story of how the community-owned and community-operated group water scheme sector has been transformed since the late 1990s, and its importance to life in rural Ireland.
The short documentary follows the history and the ultimate success story through the viewpoints of many of the key personalities who helped face and overcome the national challenge of improving water services for rural homes, farms and businesses.
Farmers, policy makers, NFGWS staff, academics and local authority staff candidly recount the main events and the reasons why the NFGWS was established, and how a partnership approach between the Federation, government departments and the local authorities brought about a period of huge change.
Those from farming backgrounds proposed the co-operative structures which remain today, and this was due to the familiarity and success such structures were experiencing in farming and dairy produce at the time.
“The move towards a cooperative organisation was, I think, a key moment, … the cooperative structure provided legal protection to the organisers of their group water scheme,” said former research and evaluation officer, Brian Mac Donald.
Rural Ireland
The 40-minute film explores how the work of the GWS sector over the last 50 years has led to the reliable provision of water to some 200,000 members throughout rural Ireland enjoy today.
The key events that brought such communities together, and the growing focus on drinking water source protection, climate action and biodiversity enhancement are among the topics explored in the documentary, as well as how farmers remain instrumental in the sector.
All of this and more has helped to create the diverse and vibrant group water scheme landscape we have today in Ireland.
Rural Water Services Conference looks towards the future
Hosted as part of Rural Water Week 2024, the Rural Water Services Conference will see a plethora of expert speakers share their experiences and ideas on all things rural water.
The theme of this year’s conference is ‘Strategies for a Resilient Rural Water Sector’ and will focus on future priorities for the sector, including presentations on the Rural Water Working Group, a local authority perspective on managing rural water and preparations for the new NFGWS strategic plan.
The second part of the day will look at the critical role group water schemes will play in river basin management planning.
The new ‘Farming for Water’ EIP will be explored and a special session on best practices in daily operations — drawing insights from group water schemes — will round off the day.
A number of key stakeholders will attend, including the Department Housing; Local Government & Heritage; local group water schemes; the Environmental Protection Agency; Health Service Executive; local authorities; universities; LAWPRO; Teagasc; Inland Fisheries Ireland; Uisce Éireann; suppliers to the sector, and international guests.
The National Federation of Group Water Schemes has recently welcomed Mark Farrelly as its new chief executive officer.
Mark comes from Killinkere in Co. Cavan has a strong background in farming, GAA, “and, of course, rural water”. Mark will be presenting on the new NFGWS Strategic Plan 2025-2030 at next week’s Rural Water Services Conference.
Speaking to Agriland, Mark Farrelly said:
“We are very excited for this year’s Rural Water Week. The timely launch of our 25-year documentary and the upcoming Rural Water Services Conference strikes a lovely balance between reflecting on how far the group water sector has come in recent decades and the potential of where it can go to in the future.
The farming sector has played a key role in the foundation and continued success of group water schemes all around Ireland and, as this year’s Conference will showcase, farmers will be vitally important in the years ahead.
“This is true, not just in relation to drinking water source protection, but in tackling all the environmental and climate challenges we are faced with. “
The full 25 Years a Co-Op documentary, which recognises the efforts of local people and farmers in securing safe and reliable water supplies for their local communities, is available to watch online.
As mentioned in the documentary, it is vitally important that members of the group water schemes get involved to help protect this most essential rural asset.
If you would like to find out more about the documentary, the conference, Rural Water Week or how to get involved in your local group water scheme, visit www.nfgws.ie or search online for #RuralWaterWeek, #RuralWaterServicesConference @NFGWS.
