Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas a chur in iúl don Aire Stáit as teacht go dtí an Teach arís agus as an obair chuiditheach atá ar siúl aige. The Minister is doing constructive work here on flooding. The OPW has always been a very constructive organisation and seems to operate well. Thinking back to former Ministers of State who have had responsibility for it, such as Noel Ahern, Martin Mansergh, the Minister of State's predecessor, Brian Hayes, and the Minister of State himself, they have been very involved directly on the ground in the various issues the OPW deals with, particularly flooding. I welcome the work the Minister of State has described, the studies being done, the public consultation and the CFRAM programme.

We look back in anger at those responsible for zoning land on flood plains because, by and large, it was known that they were vulnerable to flooding. It was no surprise to people who zoned the land that it would flood - for example, if it was in a valley with a river running through it, why would it not flood? Referring to a particular estate in County Meath, someone told me he used to shoot ducks there as a child. We did not need an OPW or CFRAM study to tell us that. That is the shame of those who zoned land. Every day, I thank God I was not a councillor. Those who zoned land on flood plains cannot have a clear conscience, no matter what the reasons for it. Since the first day I became a candidate it has been an issue. I react with deep anger when I see flooding in areas where houses should not have been built. There are many examples around the country. I am glad to see many new councillors on board and I expect, hope and know they are on board with the way planning should be done. Flood plains should be left for their purpose, which is to provide somewhere for water to go when heavy rain increases river levels. There should not be houses in the way.

Over the past few years, with our changeable weather, every so often storms and surging tides have inflicted severe damage on homes, commercial property and infrastructure. In some areas of Meath we have had flash floods, including in parts of Slane where we did not have floods before, not necessarily beside the river. There have also been flash floods in Ashbourne, about which I have spoken to the Minister of State. If he has an update on the situation in Ashbourne, I would be grateful. We have also had problems in Dunboyne, County Meath, and the OPW did a fantastic job there a number of years ago which, by and large, prevented the sort of flooding that happened before. Councillor Damien O'Reilly has asked me to ask where responsibility for the maintenance of the scheme lies. Sediment has built up, and the banks of the Castle and Tolka rivers are overgrown. This may be the only river system the OPW does not maintain. While I do not expect the Minister of State to have an answer directly, he could check it. We do not want these good works to become obsolete in a few years' time because nobody has thought to do anything about them in the meantime.

I pay tribute to the local communities, the Civil Defence, county council staff, the OPW, my party colleagues on the ground - Councillors Seán Smith, Damien O'Reilly, Wayne Harding and Stephen McKee - and other party councillors, who were out there with their communities and colleagues working on a cross-party basis, mucking in and trying to get some relief for the people affected in Dunboyne, Ashbourne, Duleek, Slane and Stamullen, where we had major flooding on that particularly bad night two weeks ago. Although Stamullen is not a place where people are used to flooding, there are problems there with drains and there was some frightening flooding.

We wish the Minister of State well. We want as much funding as possible. We want to put an end to zoning on flood plains and anywhere there is any doubt about flooding. There should be no pressure to zone or solutions offered. Councillors should not do it. It is wrong, it is dangerous and it still causes families the heartbreak of seeing a foot of water in their homes where it may have been avoidable.

Approximately two years ago, excellent work was done on the river in Drumconrath, County Meath - I think it is called the Neagh river, although nobody ever seems to be certain. I raised the need for it in the Seanad and the then Minister of State, Brian Hayes, undertook to do it. It was done, but it has caused problems elsewhere along the river, particularly at Corstown. Much work remains to be done. Apart from anger at the bad planning practices, we must also praise the people involved who are helping and trying to change things, the councillors, OPW staff who are working hard, county council staff, Civil Defence and local communities who were very active in County Meath two weeks ago. In his reply, could the Minister of State sum up the interaction between the OPW and the county councils, about which there is often confusion? The OPW has a direct role with the official OPW schemes. What is its role if a place floods that never flooded before?