Cool Clear Water

Cool Clear Water                               4th September 2014 by/Tony Gorman

The mountains hung high over old Dublin town
And the rain raised the streams as they cascaded down
Over ledges so high as it gushed to the ground
Causing rainbows to form as it splashed all around

Filling up Bohernabreena with water so clean
Now some brightness has come to our Dark Rosaleen
For it glitters like silver as it’s pumped on its way
Reaching all destinations by night and by day

We remember long ago carrying water from wells
That we boiled up for use, some had stagnated smells
And bacteria was ripe and diseases were spread
Leaving people so ill and confined to their bed

But things have long changed from those days long gone by
As our reservoirs save all the rain from the sky
And its pumped into pipes and made safe for us all
As it flows out of taps like a small waterfall

Now it’s bottled and priced, mountain clear is the boast
And it’s mixed in our whiskey to be raised in a toast
And it’s used in our breweries in our Guinness and beer
And it’s offered in hospital when we come over queer

But it’s taken for granted in all in things that we do
As we use it in gallons when we’re flushing our loo
In some far off countries they’d kill for a taste
For a little of some of that water we waste

So how lucky we are that we can drink up our fill
Of all the cool water that flows down off our hills
From our Dublin Mountains with their beauty so green
Bringing pure liquid love to our Dark Rosaleen

How lucky we Dubliners have been to have a beautiful reservoir like Bohernabreena on our doorsteps.
The waterworks is situated only 12km from Dublin City Centre in the valley of Glenasmole at the foot of the Kiltipper Mountains.
Construction began in 1883 and was complete in 1886.
There are two reservoirs known as upper and lower reservoirs complete with a catchment area.
Peaty water from the surrounding hills is channelled around the upper reservoir and directed to the lower reservoir by a canal.
The Upper Reservoir provides the drinking water supply.
There are also new spillways which can be opened to take excess flood water.
My poem is a way of saying thanks to those who constructed Bohernabreena for a wonderful construction and for ensuring we had clean water in our homes since I was a lad many moons ago.

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