Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is responsible for six fishery harbour centres located in Howth, Dunmore East, Castletownbere, Dingle, Rossaveel and Killybegs. The centres provide essential services and facilities for the fishing industry around the coastline.

The Department also has responsibility for North Harbour at Cape Clear Island and for maintaining a range of small harbours, piers, lights and beacons around the coast, in accordance with the 1902 Act.

Repairs to local authority-owned piers and harbours and other coastal defences remain, in the first instance, the responsibility of the relevant local authority. Courtown Harbour is therefore the responsibility of Wexford County Council. That said, myself and the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Coveney, are acutely aware of the ferocity of the recent storms combined with the exceptionally high tides which have resulted in widespread damage to vital public infrastructure including various small local authority piers and harbours and various navigational lights and beacons around the coast. We are also concerned, in particular, at the impact this damage may have on our fishing industry.

The Minister is working closely with his Cabinet colleagues in evaluating the overall extent of the damage. The Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine is represented on the National Co-ordination Group on Severe Weather, convened to assess the impact of the storms on infrastructure and communities and to ensure a co-ordinated response by the relevant local authorities, Departments and agencies. The Government is anxious to deal with the totality of the impact of the storms and has asked local authorities to assess the damage in their areas and revert with their reports as soon as possible to enable a fully informed and co-ordinated response to the damage to our coastal communities as a result of the exceptionally bad storms. However, even now it is hard to completely determine the full extent of the damage. Inspections will have to continue when there are more favourable tides, to check the lower structural sections of some harbours. It should be noted that weather and tidal conditions over the coming days may not make things any easier.

The Minister will continue to assess the damage reports and the estimates of the cost of repair and expects a full and complete damage evaluation over the next few weeks. That information will be fed into the Government's overall consideration of the appropriate course of action. The Minister fully expects his Department to have a prominent role in the Government's co-ordinated response. He is confident that the damage caused to critical pier and harbour infrastructure can be addressed as comprehensively and quickly as possible and that the Department will play its part along with all other relevant Departments, local authorities and agencies to achieve this objective.

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