Maura Hopkins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Like other Senators, I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, to the Chamber. I thank him for his ongoing work in this brief. The difficult issue of flooding affects many communities. As the Minister of State will know, flood defences were deployed in Ballinasloe town centre in recent weeks when there was a fear of flooding. The worthwhile works that have taken place in the Derrymullan area of Ballinasloe, including the construction of a flood wall, have had a real and positive impact on homeowners in that area. As the Minister of State is aware, more needs to be done. The wall needs to be extended and works are needed at the East Bridge in Ballinasloe to ensure other homeowners enjoy the same positive benefits.

As the Minister of State is aware, County Roscommon faces particular difficulties due to the presence of turloughs. I understand that geological surveys have been conducted to monitor how flood levels are affected by the filling and emptying of turloughs. I would like to see a little more action in terms of how we deal with this problem. I would be interested to get an update from the Minister of State in this regard. There are many examples in County Roscommon of turloughs causing major problems for homeowners and businesses. Senator Leyden has mentioned Bushfield, Boyle and Lough Funshinagh. I would like to see some progress. Like other Senators, I strongly compliment our local authorities and the OPW. In my experience, Roscommon County Council has been very proactive in implementing the minor works scheme and in trying to identify solutions to deal with this difficult issue, to which it is difficult to find an engineering solution.

The Minister of State will be familiar with the homeowner relocation scheme, which I raised in the Seanad last week. I understand that 75 homes are under consideration by the OPW under the scheme. A family does not apply under such a scheme for no reason. I want to raise an issue with the criteria for the scheme. I understand the need for rules to be set. Criteria are required to ensure the scheme is fair and consistent across the country.

I have concerns about a family I am working with at the moment. The Minister of State will be aware of the case. The members of this family cannot get flood insurance because they are living in a turlough area. An engineering solution to deal with the problem has not yet been identified. There has been no on-site visit from the OPW. This family has been turned down under the home relocation scheme. These people have not submitted an application for no reason. They would like to stay in their own home, but they have a constant fear that flood waters will return to their previous levels. I have evidence of those levels. I was down there at the time. Various agencies, including the emergency services and Roscommon County Council, were involved. This family cannot benefit from the scheme because the flood waters did not enter the family home. I know the Minister of State is aware of this case and has taken a proactive approach to it. I ask him to reconsider the need to meet all the criteria. This family meets 99% of the criteria. The members of the family worked so hard to prevent the flood waters from entering their home, but it now appears that they cannot access the scheme for this very reason. I will leave it at that. I ask the Minister of State to provide an update on the turloughs and on the relocation scheme.