Today, 11 days after Uisce Éireann issued a Water Conservation Order amid “absolute drought” across most of Ireland, College has sent a university-wide email advising staff and residents to conserve water.
The correspondence asks the college community to “help Trinity contribute to the success” of the water conservation notice. College specifically asked residents in accommodation buildings to take “shorter showers” and to identify “excess water usage”, for example from leaking pipes.
In the email, specific mention was made of the rugby pitch surface, which they stated was recently re-seeded and needs to be watered to be kept in good condition. They noted, “We use gray non-potable water for this purpose.”
According to Uisce Éireann, about 38% of Ireland’s drinking water is lost to leaks before it comes through the tap. They also note that climate change is leading to more frequent and intense weather events, as well as agriculture and businesses, which are at their peak in the summer. In addition, a recent investigation by The Journal found that data centres used nearly 1 billion litres of water last year. Domestic water consumption is about 242 billion litres each year, and animal agriculture is roughly 160 billion litres per year.
