Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North, Fine Gael)
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On the evening of Friday, 22 August 2008, a number of local people, who were working in the Maghanknockane area of the Stacks Mountains, felt trembling on the bog. They found this to be highly unusual as it had never happened previously in the area. Bog movement became more visible the following morning. It gained momentum throughout the afternoon and by evening, a bogslide close to 50 m wide and 12 ft. deep simply flowed down the hillside, following a path of approximately 3 km, along the valley of the Glashareag River. It moved into an area known locally as Scanlon's Bridge. En route to Scanlon's Bridge, the bogslide engulfed the bridge leading to the house of Denis Harris. He was cut off for a number of days and was lucky not to have been on the bridge at the time of the slide. His wife Maureen and son Padraig were unable to return home that Saturday and were obliged to stay with family and friends for a number of days. Thanks to Kerry County Council, the bridge was put back into operation after a week or so.

The Scanlon family, including Eamon Scanlon's 94 year old mother, were lucky not to be engulfed in the bogslide. Initially, they were able to remain in their home. However, following further movement of the bog, which came perilously close to their home, they subsequently were moved by Kerry County Council to a house in Tralee. Unfortunately, over the past weekend, their vacated home was burgled, which was a heinous act.

Kerry County Council's workers and engineering staff now have both bridges back in operation and the main through road through Macca is functioning at present. The county council also has constructed a dam 4 km from the source of the slide, which serves as a siltation lagoon that prevents peat silt from moving downstream.

A fish kill occurred in both the Glashoreag River and the upper Smearlagh River during this period. It is estimated that approximately 5,000 fish perished, most of which were juvenile salmon and sea trout and which constitute the next generation for the Feale and Smearlagh rivers. A fish survey is under way at present to determine the impact on the habitat and the extent of the fish kill. This report is expected shortly. It will no doubt take years for these very important and valuable spawning grounds to fully recover.

Shannon Regional Fisheries Board has worked with Kerry County Council to advise on the construction of the two settlement ponds and jointly engaged BMA consultants to assess the present status of the landslide and its possible origins. I hope this report will be completed and available shortly.

Kerry County Council is continuing to remove peat from the upper sections of the Glashoreag river. The company building a windfarm in the area has erected a dam to prevent a further large movement of peat. The company has also commissioned Carlow-based geotechnical consultants AGEC to undertake a study into the cause of the landslide. I hope both of these reports will be available in the near future as it is very important at this stage to allay the fears of the local people, make known the cause of the bogslide and take corrective action.

I ask the Minister to consider helping those people affected by the bogslide, as both the Harris and Scanlon families surely deserve some compensation for the inconvenience caused. A number of people have now been deprived of their fuel for winter because the area of bog they had turf harvested on was removed. Some bags of turf for the winter were also lost. The Minister, through Kerry County Council, should look favourably at helping these people.

I understand there has been another bogslide today in the west of Ireland. These are becoming all too prevalent. It is time we have some national action to prevent these bogslides. Whatever the reason behind them, surely it is possible to take such action. The last landslide in the Lyreacrompane area was more than 100 years ago and although I realise we had much rain this summer, there must be some reason for such a bogslide. It does not happen by accident.

I appeal to the Minister of State to give a very positive response and outline proposed actions to prevent a reoccurrence of this incident.

Máire Hoctor (Tipperary North, Fianna Fail)
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I will take this matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Deputy John Gormley.

I sympathise very much with the people whose livelihoods have been affected by this bogslide. I understand Kerry County Council is carrying out an investigation into its cause. Unfortunately, the bogslide also resulted in serious damage to habitats and species. The investigation should address whether and to what extent the works associated with a windfarm development in the area contributed to the bogslide.

I will briefly mention the planning history of this case. The planning application, accompanied by an EIA, was lodged with Kerry County Council in December 2002; the council subsequently granted permission for the development in October 2003, subject to 15 conditions. In considering the case on appeal, I understand that An Bord Pleanála sought from the planning applicant a report from a qualified hydrogeologist or other suitable expert regarding the stability of the peat and soil cover on the site and the potential risk of landslides arising from the construction of the proposed development. The applicant submitted a report on site stability in January 2004.

I also understand that in March 2004 the board requested an additional report from the hydrogeologist assessing the impact of the potential construction works on soil stability with particular reference to construction methods and design and construction of turbine foundations. This was supplied in April 2004 and following its consideration the board granted planning permission for this development on 16 June 2004, subject to 15 conditions.

Separate bog slides on 23 August and 3 September 2008 caused damage to two designated European conservation sites — one special area of conservation and one special protection area. The special protection area was designated particularly for the hen harrier, and an area of suitable foraging habitat for this species has been lost. The special area of conservation was designated for salmon and otter habitat. Spawning beds and feeding habitat have been extensively damaged for these species.

The Feale river is recognised as one of the most important salmon rivers in the Shannon catchment. For that reason, the lower River Shannon special area of conservation was extended to include a considerable stretch of the river, including its tributary, the Smearlagh. Several kilometres of the Glashoreag river, which is a tributary of the Smearlagh, were also included in the extended special area of conservation, as they contained good stretches of salmonid spawning beds and nursery areas.

It is estimated that 4 km to 5 km of fish spawning grounds have been destroyed and now lie under a metre or more of silt. Fisheries officers have estimated that it may take ten years for the spawning grounds to recover. There are now no fish in the affected parts of these rivers, and it is feared that silt will travel downstream and cause further damage. The effects on biodiversity may also be significant, as otters in the area, which depend on fish, have lost their food source.

The otter is strictly protected under the European Communities (Natural Habitats) Regulations, 1997 to 2005, and it is an offence to damage or destroy the breeding site or resting place of this species.

The council is working closely with Shannon Regional Fisheries Board as well as the national parks and wildlife service of the Department. Any restoration plan or measure would have to be screened by NPWS in the interests of necessary compliance with the natural habitats regulations.