We may not pay directly for our water, but its flow is not as free as we like to think

Do you turn off the tap when you’re brushing your teeth? When you fill the kettle do you boil the exact amount you need for a cuppa? Do you really? Be honest now.

Many of us are guilty of taking our water supply for granted. After all, Ireland gets more than its fair share of rain, water is free and it always comes gushing out of the tap when we need it.

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It’s not that simple, says Jonathan Derham, programme manager at the Environmental Protection Agency.

“Water needs protection, it’s a natural resource and it’s finite, despite what we think here in Ireland,” he says. “There is huge cost in treating and cleaning water, with an enormous amount of chemicals and energy involved. From a