Mr. Jim Casey:

We have a very good working relationship with IFI, right down through our teams, not just at present but for many years now. It is evidenced in a number of service level agreements we have had for a decade or so, the most recent of which was signed at the end of last year. In fact, since 1980, the OPW has been working with IFI on research into the development of environmental drainage maintenance, capital enhancement works and so on. The programme builds on existing good practice developed between both organisations over many years. The environmental drainage maintenance programme was further developed into the environmental river enhancement programme, EREP, which has provided an avenue for environmental research in OPW catchments, establishing baseline data sets where they are absent or building on existing data sets through repeated surveying and monitoring. This programme aims to enable the OPW to maximise environmental gain during arterial drainage maintenance practices while still maintaining our statutory remit for conveyance.

Works carried out by IFI and the OPW for this and preceding programmes include floral, faunal and fish stock surveys and assessments, hydromorphology assessments, enhancement programmes, tourism angling measures between 1995 and 2000, environmental river enhancement programmes since 2008 and generic surveys on the Moy catchment.

I can go into much more detail on that. Suffice to say, we recently signed a further service level agreement with IFI. That was at the end of last year or early this year. That will be funded by the OPW. We are committing funds of up to approximately €250,000 annually over five years or so. Funding those measures is a significant investment by the OPW.