Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

The Deputy raised an important point on co-ordination of management of the Shannon River, an issue upon which there have been several discussions in the past and one which cannot be easily resolved. The Deputy will be aware there are historical issues in regard to bog development in that area on which the silting impact has been considerable, a problem also not easily resolved.

I recall the former President of the Irish Farmers' Association, IFA, Mr. Tom Clinton, was at that time involved in a major review in regard to whether the Shannon could be drained, a claim often made by politicians of various hues and cries down the years. The problem is that the drop from Athlone to Meelick is only a number of feet. If my memory serves me correctly that drop is not even 15 feet. When one considers the amount of water coming down that type of terrain the surrounding area becomes almost like a saucer. Many land reclamation projects and tributary systems have been undertaken in the area and anyone with a knowledge of it, as I have, knows that if one walks along the Shannon banks and the callows during the summer one will see houses which have not been inhabited for years, some of which are no longer habitable. This is an area in which people lived prior to that land drainage work. The problem is huge.

The suggestion from somebody on the back of a tractor every time a flood occurs that this is a problem that can be easily solved, apart from anything else, is not in line with geological reality.

See this speech in context