Kevin Moran (Longford-Westmeath, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am delighted to present to the Senate the annual adaptation transition statement on the policy measures adopted by the Office of Public Works, OPW, during the past year to help adapt to the effects of climate change on flood risk management. In the past year, the OPW launched the flood risk management plans that detail the risk and feasible measures to address flooding from rivers and the sea, the primary sources of our flood risk. We not only looked at flood risk and its impact for today but also studied the flood risk and impact for two potential climate change scenarios in the future.

The catchment flood risk assessment and management, CFRAM programme which delivered these plans was the largest national study ever undertaken of our risk from significant flood events or one-in-100-year floods and it followed best practice. In 2012, 300 communities were selected for this study as they were most likely to be impacted by future flooding. These included 90 coastal communities. These communities represent 80% of the national potential risk and they are home to almost two thirds of our population. While CFRAM assessed flood risk in all our large urban areas, approximately one quarter of these communities had populations of less than 500 people and half had less than 2,000 people. On 3 May 2018, accompanied by the Taoiseach, I launched the flood maps for these communities and the plans that set out how we can manage flood risk both for these communities and nationally. I also announced a €1 billion investment in a further 118 flood relief schemes over the coming decade which, together with the 42 schemes completed and 33 under way, means the Government can protect 95% of properties assessed to be at risk from a 100-year flood event. I also launched a new website, floodinfo.ie, where people can view the maps and plans by location.

At the start of this ten-year programme of investment, I announced that the OPW, working with local authorities, would be commencing work on the detailed designs for 50 of these 118 new flood relief schemes. I am delighted to report that there has since been proactive engagement between the OPW and the local authorities on the arrangements and structures to be put in place to advance the implementation of these first tranche projects. Project inception meetings have focused on the establishment of project steering groups, governance structures and the resource and procurement requirements. The OPW has already put in place panels of engineering design consultants and environmental consultants, which is helping to expedite the delivery process. In the past year, the OPW has either completed or begun work on flood relief schemes to protect 80% of those properties assessed to be at risk of significant flooding. All schemes are designed and built in line with international best practice, including making sure they can be adapted in the future for potential climate change.

It is also important to refer to the measures we have put in place for those at-risk properties where investment in a flood relief scheme is not feasible. The minor flood mitigation works and coastal protection scheme continues to be a valuable measure to address localised flood risk. In the past year, the OPW has committed an total of €5.6 million for 65 localised schemes by local authorities.

The work of the interdepartmental flood policy co-ordination group, of which I am chairman, is also focused on climate change adaptation measure for flood risk management. Significant progress this year has been achieved by Met Éireann and the OPW in establishing the flood forecasting service, including the appointment of a chief hydrometerologist who is leading the delivery of this service. The publication by the OPW in the past year of the flood risk maps developed by the CFRAM programme, including maps reflecting the impact from future climate change, are a valuable resource to inform local authorities in their preparation of their local and sectoral adaptation plans in 2019, for planning decisions as well as for planning emergency responses. The work by the OPW in the past 12 months on adopting measures to adapt for climate change has been significant. In particular, the launch of the flood risk management plans demonstrates our proactive approach to addressing the possible impact from climate change, both in our planning to manage our flood risk and in the delivery of flood relief schemes. I am confident that our focus on climate change in flood risk management will allow our investment today to be easily adapted to deal with the impact from climate change in the future.