Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 82: To ask the Minister for Defence if he will make a statement detailing the types of special building measures and contingency response plans required for safety reasons where military materials are transported by planes. [8954/07]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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As Minister for Defence, I have no responsibility for the transport of military material by plane, other than that transported by or on behalf of the Defence Forces. Weapons and ammunition for the Defence Forces, which may be intended for transportation by plane, are stored in dedicated armouries at Casement Aerodrome. These are separate to stores used for other materials and are secured by CCTV and high security doors.

The use of and inherent risks associated with all defence buildings are considered as part of the assessment for proposed building projects and the Department complies with recognised national and international standards, codes and practices for building, design and construction. Particular attention is paid to buildings in which hazardous materials are housed or used, such as ammunition and explosive depots, ordnance stores and fuel stores. Special measures are taken in the design and construction of such buildings commensurate with the risks identified.

When dangerous goods are transported by Air Corps aircraft overseas, they are listed in the diplomatic clearance application of the destination country. This information is used so as to ensure that, in the event of an in-flight emergency, the rescue and recovery services are alerted to the presence of said dangerous goods. Likewise, if dangerous goods are arriving at Casement Aerodrome, the Air Corps crash rescue service is alerted by Air Corps operations section, which receives notification through the diplomatic clearance form as to the presence and type of such goods.

In addition, the Air Corps has a full-time senior officer dedicated to the maintenance of a proactive aviation safety programme, including the monitoring of compliance with such a programme. I am satisfied the necessary safety measures are in place in the Defence Forces for the transportation of military materials.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister for his reassurance on the transportation of materials. Is the Minister indicating the Department has absolutely no role in the transport of armaments through the country by companies producing, transporting or exporting weaponry? Is the Department informed of such shipments in or out of the country in any way or does it have any role in emergency planning, considering the amount of weapons being transported through Shannon, some of which are explosive?

Last year I asked questions on what were termed "dangerous goods" being transported from Canada through Shannon to Bulgaria. Do the military authorities lend any advice to the Irish Aviation Authority and the airport authorities on freight craft carrying such materials, and what procedures and protections should be followed? Is there advice on the separation of the civilian population using the Shannon or Dublin airports and military goods? Such separation might involve blast deflection walls etc., used in the presence of goods of explosive nature or where there is a possibility of a major event.

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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The answer to the Deputy's first question is "no". Our only responsibility relates to Army material transported by the Army or on behalf of the Army by civil aircraft. That is where our responsibility ends. The responsibility for the matters referred to by the Deputy lies with the Department of Transport.

However, we have a responsibility in the event of an emergency. As Minister for Defence, I am head of the emergency planning task force, on which there is a later question. My job as chairman is to co-ordinate the response to various projected emergencies.

One such emergency would of course be an accident involving an aeroplane at an airport because of the presence of explosives or as a result of a crash etc. We have very detailed plans to deal with such a contingency, and we have exercised those plans on a number of occasions. I personally attended one of the exercises at Dublin Airport about 12 months ago and I attended an exercise in Shannon much more recently, although I cannot remember the exact date. That was quite an extensive exercise, which went on for most of a day.

On advice given to the aviation authorities, the Department of Transport is a member of the emergency task force, which I chair. There is clearly much interaction between members of the emergency task force, which meets every four or five weeks. A back-up group to the emergency task force consists of officials from various Departments and there is much interaction there. If the Department of Transport or any others responsible for such matters wish to consult with our people, they can do so either at a meeting of the emergency task force or at a meeting of the back-up committee.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Is the Minister happy with the plans in place for an emergency? For example, in Shannon there has been a number of incidents in the past number of years, with some involving a number of factories in Shannon being evacuated, and others involving fire brigade units from all around the region, not only those in Shannon Airport. The US refused to disclose what was on the military planes involved.

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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The emergency planning task force, of which I am chairman, is never completely happy with contingency arrangements. It is for this reason that exercises are conducted and the task force meets regularly. In light of experience and new methods of terrorism, we are improving plans consistently.

A number of simulated exercises at Dublin Airport and Shannon Airport were audited by the relevant European authorities and found to be first class, but this does not mean we can become complacent. We are constantly improving airport security and I have instructed the relevant people to conduct more exercises in the near future to determine what else can be learned. While we are never fully happy, we are always improving and our contingency arrangements are as good as those found anywhere.