Paul Connaughton Snr (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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Question 133: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government his plans to assist local authorities and community groups to clean up beaches and to improve amenities in order to increase the allocation of blue flags by the European Union; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16430/05]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The blue flag scheme is operated by the Foundation for Environmental Education, an international non-governmental organisation based in Denmark, and is administered in Ireland by An Taisce. A local authority wishing to apply for blue flag status for a bathing area makes application to An Taisce who provides advice and guidance in relation to the scheme, the criteria on which decisions are based and aspects of beach management which may require improvement. My Department provides grant aid to An Taisce as a contribution towards the administration expenses of the scheme.

To qualify for blue flag status, a beach must be a designated bathing area under the quality of bathing waters regulations. There are 131 such bathing areas, 122 seawater and nine freshwater, designated in Ireland. The quality of the bathing water in these areas must comply with the guideline standards laid down in the EU bathing water directive during the bathing season, which runs from 1 June to 31 August, of the year prior to the application for a blue flag. To secure a blue flag, a beach must additionally comply with criteria specified by the foundation in relation to the facilities available and general management, for example, car parking, toilets, litter control, access for the disabled and environmental information.

A total of 77 blue flags were awarded in 2004 to 73 bathing areas and four marinas, maintaining the high number of blue flags awarded in 2003. My Department has requested a report from An Taisce as to the options and measures that might be pursued for increasing the number of blue flags awarded to areas in Ireland and I expect to receive the report shortly.

The blue flag scheme is mainly directed towards developed, resort beaches that have, in addition to excellent water quality, appropriate infrastructure and services. As a complement to the blue flag scheme, a separate environmental award scheme called the Green Coast Award is now being operated to recognise beaches which have excellent water quality and which are also prized for their natural unspoilt environment. The scheme is being applied, at this stage, to the east coast of Ireland and forms a major part of the Clean Coast project that is operated by An Taisce with INTERREG support and in partnership with Keep Wales Tidy. The other major element of the Clean Coast project is Coastcare, where voluntary groups adopt a beach and take responsibility for its care. Coastcare is particularly commendable in that it empowers local people to take charge of their own environment. Eleven beaches on the east coast have received Green Coast awards.

The potential to increase the number of environmental awards is being enhanced by the major investment programme underway to upgrade sewerage networks and wastewater treatment facilities. Enormous strides have been made in recent years in meeting our targets under the EU urban wastewater directive. Compliance with the December 2005 deadline of the directive stood at 25% at the start of the national development plan. That has now risen to some 90%. All remaining schemes needed to achieve full compliance with the directive are included in my Department's water services investment programme 2004-2006 which is available in the Oireachtas Library.

In addition, the river basin management projects, established under the water framework directive, will cover all inland surface waters and groundwaters as well as estuaries and coastal waters out to a distance of one nautical mile. These projects will identify all significant impacts on water quality and quantity, set quality objectives and identify and put in place the necessary monitoring and management measures to achieve those objectives. These projects should lead to improved water quality in coastal areas, which in turn will have a significant positive effect on the quality of bathing water in those areas.