Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Now we are seeing the resumption of inter-county travel and I hope we will start to see people holidaying at home this summer. However, I want to raise an issue that affects many of our coastal communities and the wonderful beaches we have, and that is coastal erosion. Because of climate change, we have seen this problem manifest itself to a far greater degree over recent years. There are estimates that 300 km of road is currently at risk of falling into the sea. Three years ago there was an estimate that up to 800 properties were at risk of falling into the sea. A lot of these are located in Galway and Louth and in my county of Wexford but, as I am sure the Ceannaire, Senator Clifford-Lee and the Minister will know, in north Dublin quite a number are at risk as well. The Office of Public Works, OPW, has done some work in this area but it is fairly limited and while the Minister established a national coastal change management strategy steering group, we still await the report of that group with its recommendations. The scale of this problem should not be underestimated. Of the 7,800 km of coastline around this country, about 3,500 km, because it is made of soft sediment, faces the possibility of falling into the sea during marine erosion. I therefore ask for a debate on this and on measures we can put in place to address it. In Wexford we are seeing houses in Kilmore at present at risk of falling into the sea. We have lost a lot of the beach in Courtown, and to our tourism sector protecting not only our beaches but also where people live is very important.

Tomorrow, 11 May, marks the 50th anniversary of the death of whom I consider to be our greatest Taoiseach, Seán Lemass. In this country his contribution is not as celebrated as much as it should be. It is appropriate that we should look at doing so at a national level. I believe Dublin Airport should be named after him because of the contribution he made to opening up this country. Given the lessons we can learn about engagement in the North and opening up our country, it is appropriate we acknowledge the contribution of Seán Lemass.