Ciarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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Question 701: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the reason he has not announced the local agenda 21 environment partnership fund 2005; when he will do so; and if he will make a statement on the achievement to date with the grants given from the fund in previous years. [24053/05]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The local agenda 21 environmental partnership fund scheme promotes sustainable development by assisting, at a local level, environmental awareness projects that involve partnership arrangements between local authorities and local community groups, schools and environmental NGOs. The scheme is co-funded on a 50-50 basis by the Department and the local authorities. The scheme was introduced in 1997 and since then the Department has contributed a total of €1,910,409 towards 1,055 projects funded under the scheme. Both the level of funding and the number of projects assisted has increased year-on-year.

Allocations from the environment fund, from which the Department's contribution to the local agenda 21 environment partnership fund is drawn, will be finalised shortly. I look forward to the continued operation of the partnership fund.