David Cullinane (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State has indicated that he is a keen fan of sailing. If he had been in west Waterford during the month of August, he would, in the aftermath of the heavy rainfall, have needed a boat to make his way around certain parts of the area. This matter relates to the impact of said rainfall on the roads in west Waterford.

On 12 August extensive damage was caused to roads in the Lismore electoral area and west Waterford in general. Over 40 millimetres of rain fell in a four hour period and this resulted in roads being washed away, mudslides, debris being washed onto roads and extensive surface damage on many local roads. As the Minister of State will appreciate, there was heavy rainfall for the remainder of August and it continued into the early days of this month. This led to the problem being exacerbated. Waterford County Council estimates that the cost of repairing the damage will be €2.5 million. It has written to the National Roads Authority and the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport seeking assistance in repairing the damage. The National Roads Authority has advised that it has no additional funding available and that the council should reallocate its specific improvement grants. In fact, the council has already done this, but it only enabled it to free up €600,000. That amount will only allow it to repair a small number of the roads on which work will be required.

I am aware that many roads throughout the country, even those in the Minister of State's constituency, require repair. However, in this instance, I am referring to serious damage that has been done to many local roads, a large number of which remain unusable and those who live on them are badly affected because there are often no alternative routes for them to take.

As stated, the estimated cost of the repairs is €2.5 million. Waterford County Council has submitted to the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport an extensive list of the roads involved, the nature of the repairs which must be carried out and the cost of these repairs. I have a copy of the list in my possession and can give it to the Minister of State if he so desires. It shows that the county council has already assessed repairs requiring the allocation of €1.8 million, €1.3 million of which relates to repairs on local primary roads. As stated, many such roads are currently impassable. The council simply does not have the means available to it to carry out the necessary repairs. Like other local authorities, its budget has been continually cut during the past four years. In addition, road maintenance grants have been cut in the past four or five budgets.

Many of the roads in County Waterford to which I refer are in a bad state of repair. The director of services with responsibility for roads in the county is very concerned that if the repairs are not carried out now, the cost of making them next year will be much higher. The State would actually save money if the necessary funding was made available now to allow the roads to be repaired. Remediation works should be carried out now because otherwise some of the roads to which I refer will be either washed away completely or will decay into an even worse state of repair. This is a serious issue which must be addressed.

It is unusual for very senior officials of local authorities to lobby Oireachtas Members and other elected representatives. Those in County Waterford have gone to that extraordinary length as a result of the serious nature of the problem. I ask the Minister of State to give genuine consideration to this matter and ascertain whether extra funding might be made available for the repair of the roads to which I refer.