Seanad debates

Wednesday, 2 December 2015

10:30 am

Photo of Trevor Ó ClochartaighTrevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein)
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Cuirim céad fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. Táim an-bhuíoch de as teacht isteach chun an cheist seo a phlé.

Climate change is one of the hot topics this week. In 2013 and 2014, we experienced particularly bad winters during which there were many storms and a great deal of damage was caused in the context of coastal erosion. Counties Galway and Mayo were particularly hard hit in terms of the amount of damage done. Senators will recall the scenes of roads being washed away that were shown on television. A friend of mine who had no access to her home for weeks because the access road had been washed away had to have a new roadway constructed. Many graveyards were damaged and fields were either damaged or washed away. I know from contact with the local authorities concerned that they were under severe pressure at that time in terms of the amount of maintenance and other work they had to do. There were some great projects undertaken in my own local area, including at Spiddal. While the local authorities and their staff are to be commended on their efforts during that time and their ongoing work in this area, a great deal of work remains to be done in places such as the Aran Islands where, as I am sure the Minister of State is aware, roads were washed away or left impassable as a result of the damage caused by storms.

Coastal erosion is not a phenomenon that is going to go away. While 2013 and 2014 were unprecedented in terms of severe weather conditions, storms are occurring with greater frequency. I know from research in this regard that similar phenomena occurred in 1974, 1983, 1989, 2004, 2008 and that the pattern is expected to continue.There will be rising sea levels and increasing frequency and intensity of storms. There is a real threat to coastal infrastructure but in other countries they have longer-term monitoring programmes and they map changes on their coastlines to enable them to plan in advance. It was strange that, in 2013-14, the Government did not seek funding from the EU for work on coastal erosion issues and to combat coastal erosion and potential storm damage. A number of people felt that an attempt should have been made to access funding from the EU as it related to a natural disaster. It was unprecedented and something over which people had no control. Local authorities told us their hands were tied as regards resources and that these resources were limited, although the Government told them it was giving them the resources that were available.

It is frustrating that people who see roadways or infrastructure damaged close to their homes, but not on land owned by the local authority, get absolutely no support unless locals help them to repair damage. I have been contacted recently by people around Tawin Island and Oranmore who asked me to raise this issue with the Minister as theirs is a low-lying area. There has been severe coastal erosion in recent times and the foreshore is of a particularly delicate nature. Oranmore is very close to the city so a large number of people live there and they are concerned that if other severe storms come their houses and lands will be in danger. I am grateful to the Minister of State for coming in and I hope he can elucidate where we stand, particularly in counties Galway and Mayo and in Tawin and Oranmore in particular. Can he say what is being done, what can be done and what will be done by the Government?

Photo of Simon HarrisSimon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank Senator Ó Clochartaigh for raising this matter and giving me the opportunity to update the Seanad on the subject of coastal erosion. I echo his comments on the courageous work carried out by local authority workers right around the country, including in Galway, during the very difficult storms and floods we experienced a number of years ago.

Coastal erosion is a natural and ongoing process which takes place right around the entire coastline of Ireland. Coastal erosion may threaten human life, land or infrastructure such as roads. However, it must be recognised that coastal erosion also has beneficial effects such as providing natural nourishment and supply of sediment to adjacent beaches. Due to the considerable extent and nature of the Irish coastline impacted by erosion and the fact that it is an ongoing natural process it would be uneconomical and impractical for the State to protect all of this coastline. In the first instance, it is a matter for the local authorities to identify and prioritise areas of their respective coastlines considered to be under significant threat from erosion. Any approach toward addressing problems of coastal erosion must be informed by an assessment of the risks involved. In some cases a "do nothing" or "no active intervention" approach might well be the most appropriate management response and international studies have borne this out. Some previous interventions to solve local erosion problems have exacerbated coastal erosion at other locations or have generated other environmental problems.

The OPW requires that proposals and funding applications for structural measures to prevent or mitigate coastal erosion should be done in conjunction with an appropriate coastal erosion risk management study which fully investigates, substantiates and demonstrates the merits of any measures being proposed. Before we spend taxpayers' money on fixing a problem we need to check it is the right solution and does not have any accidental consequences. Such measures usually require the investment of substantial amounts of public funds. In order to ensure value for money, it is considered best practice to carry out a study in advance of undertaking any measures. A study should include technical, economic, social and environmental criteria and should ensure that due consideration is given to the full range of management options. The Irish coastal protection strategy study, ICPSS, has surveyed and assessed the coastal erosion risk along the entire national coastline. This study is available on the OPW website, where the exact risk to various parts of the coastline is shown. The information is available to all local authorities to enable them to develop appropriate plans and strategies for the sustainable management of the coastline in their counties including the identification, prioritisation and, subject to the availability of resources, the implementation of coastal protection works both of a structural and non-structural nature as appropriate.

I am informed that Galway County Council has carried out some works reinforcing bridges on Tawin Island. Galway County Council was allocated funding of €441,990 for works on the south shore of Inishbofin and €90,000 for a study on Inishbofin as a whole in 2015, under the minor flood mitigation works and coastal protection scheme. Under this scheme applications are considered for measures costing not more than €500,000 in each instance. Studies are also funded under this scheme so it is a direct way for the local authority to apply for minor flood mitigation and coastal protection scheme funding, up to €500,000, if there is an area they need to examine to see if action can be taken. Funding of up to 90% of the cost is available for eligible projects from my office, subject to criteria, and any application which the council may make under the scheme will be considered by the OPW in accordance with the scheme's eligibility criteria. No application for funding for works on Tawin Island was submitted by Galway County Council under this scheme but the option remains open to it. The OPW has not received any application for funding under this scheme from Mayo County Council for 2015.

Following the storms of December and January of 2013-14, the Government made funding available for the repair of specific public infrastructure and facilities damaged by the severe weather events. The amount allocated to Mayo County Council by the Government for coastal repair and reinstatement works was €4,205,000. Galway County Council was allocated €1,144,800. Tawin Island was not included on the programme of works for coastal storm damage repair submitted by Galway County Council. In recent weeks, however, I have been able to make an additional funding allocation in recognition of storms that occurred in February 2014 and under this funding allocation I provided a further €6,000 to Mayo County Council. Based on the very substantial works identified previously by Galway County Council, it will be allocated a further €498,000. I have given local authorities discretion in how they use the funding so they must pick the coastal repair or flood repair projects they think most appropriate. It may be open to Galway County Council to consider Tawin Island under that, and it may submit an application to my office under the minor works scheme.

Photo of Trevor Ó ClochartaighTrevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister of State for his clarification. A large proportion of the funding to which he referred should go to counties in the west because that is where one finds most of the coastal issues. Is there a limit to the minor flood mitigation and coastal protection scheme fund? How much is in the fund and will there be more money there for local authorities to apply for? The Minister of State said no works were applied for in Tawin Island. Is there any particular reason for that? Is the scheme open only to lands or shoreline in the ownership of the local authority? If not, would that be why Tawin Island and other such places do not receive support to put in rock armour or coastal barriers to alleviate coastal erosion?

Photo of Simon HarrisSimon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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It stands to reason that my office can only fund projects it has been asked to fund. If we have not received an application we cannot assess the application. Without knowing the specific details of Tawin Island, Galway County Council will be well aware of the criteria for the minor works scheme and if it sees merit in submitting an application I assure the Senator it will be assessed as a matter of priority when it comes to my office. It may also be possible to fund the work under the €498,000 in additional funding to Galway County Council as the council has discretion over how to spend it. I know it has many priorities and the western counties took quite a battering. The minor flood mitigation and coastal protection scheme is not capped and councils can apply as often as they wish for projects of up to €500,000, but it has to come out of my overall OPW budget. There is not a limited pool of money in the scheme as it is demand led and we assess each application based on the criteria.

I assume that Galway County Council will also be seeking funding in the context of coastal management and protection arising from the western CFRAM study. We published draft maps last week and, should it highlight any coastal flood protection requirements, there may be an opportunity for further funding. In light of the capital plan which we published recently we expect to spend, as a country, more money on flood mitigation measures and coastal protection in the next five years than we did in the past 20 years. Given the issues arising from climate change it is right and proper that we do that. It is a serious investment on behalf of the State and my office will continue to work with local authorities on this.