Water

The Water Management Unit (WMU) is the unit within the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) with responsibility for the protection of the aquatic environment. We achieve this through a number of activities including: monitoring water quality preparing water quality management plans controlling effluent discharges taking action to combat or minimise the effects of pollution supporting environmental research.

The Drinking Water Inspectorate is a unit within the NIEA, responsible for regulating the drinking water quality in Northern Ireland under the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007 and the Private Water Supplies Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1994. The Drinking Water Inspectorate:

• regulates drinking water quality in Northern Ireland for public and private supplies
• assesses drinking water quality against regulatory standards
• carries out detailed inspections of water sampling and analytical processes, and assesses water treatment and distribution policies and practices
• publishes an annual report containing an overview of drinking water quality in Northern Ireland
• develops policy and regulation on drinking water issues
• deals with incidents which affect or could affect drinking water quality.