Results 14,181-14,200 of 15,379 for speaker:Eoin Ó Broin

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: When I requested this meeting I asked that officials be invited to attend. It is regrettable that officials are not in attendance. They should be present at the next meeting we have on this issue because it is vital that the Department is part of this conversation. One of the frustrating aspects of this issue is that, as Mr. Flynn stated, it is 26 years in the making and is clearly not a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: What was the cost of the fines in that particular case?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: Was that for Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive infringement?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: I asked were the investment levels going up or down. What is Mr. Flynn's reading of the picture?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: One of the frustrating things for us, and more so for the EPA, is that if we were talking about water charges, as we have spent many hours doing, and the Water Framework Directive, and there was a discussion of fines, it would be on the front page of most of the newspapers tomorrow. I would be amazed if we get any coverage of this, or it will be very limited coverage, despite being in the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: Are they annual reports that the EPA produces?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: Therefore, between 2007 and 2013 when the current infringement proceedings started, there would have been annual reports to the Department telling it there were problems with the levels of compliance.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: That is across all the areas of capital investment.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: Is the same consequent increase applicable to investment in wastewater treatment facilities?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: Over what period of time?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: How does that €600 million relate to the Minister's and Irish Water's estimate that it will cost €1 billion to bring us into compliance with the directive? That is obviously €400 million short.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: No. The substantive compliance is up to 2021. If Irish Water is saying that up to 2021 it is €1 billion and Ms Rooney is saying it is €600 million, surely that means there is going to be a problem, unless I have misunderstood the figures.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: So that means it is €400 million less than what the Minister has told us he needs.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: In reply to a parliamentary question on 21 March the Minister, Deputy Coveney, stated "With regard to the 38 agglomerations identified in the current EU infringement process, Irish Water estimate that investment of €1bn in waste water treatment plants is necessary to ensure adequate treatment of waste water from these urban areas." My interpretation of this is it will cost €1...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: It has been spent already.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: Perhaps he did not understand that when he was answering the question because it is not clear from the answer. This still leaves Irish Water significantly short, if its annual investment is €124 million. The EPA stated that in the early noughties, it was approximately €300 million a year and then fell to €200 million. Now Mr. Grant is speaking about €124 million...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: That is what I am asking for, absolutely.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: Am I right in saying six-month reviews are done on the progress on this work or did I just invent this from somewhere?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: When the six-month update on the priority sites is done, would be possible to send it directly to the committee clerk?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Breach of EU Urban Wastewater Directive: Discussion (18 May 2017)

Eoin Ó Broin: That would then alert us and we could set in train the invitation to come back to this discussion. It would be useful for us to do it with this frequency.