PJ Murphy (Fine Gael)
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Mr. Taaffe has touched on an interesting aspect, which is very relevant to my own area, namely, that some areas simply will not have receiving waterways. The area I am referring to is the southern half of County Galway and north County Clare, which is the karst landscape of the Burren and Burren lowland. There is no groundwater. There are no drains or rivers because everything runs underground in the karst landscape. There is no surface water in the whole region, which is why we have this challenge, but we cannot simply rule out an area the size of County Louth and say there is no solution. We must find a solution for such a large geographical area. To date, there has not been a solution and building is stagnant. While I agree with what Mr. Taaffe has said, the idea that we can rule out as unsuitable areas that do not have a means of bringing treated water away above ground cannot be an end solution.