Emmet Stagg (Kildare North, Labour)
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Question 161: To ask the Minister for Finance the outcome of the meeting between officials from the Office of Public Works and Kildare County Council on 31 March 2006, to discuss the Leixlip flood relief study; and the necessary steps which Kildare County Council will have to take to provide a suitable flood alleviation scheme for consideration of funding. [14039/06]

Tom Parlon (Laois-Offaly, Progressive Democrats)
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In light of the flooding problems in Leixlip and development pressures in the surrounding area, the Office of Public Works has agreed to undertake a local catchment flood risk assessment and management study for the Rye River, encompassing the towns of Leixlip, Maynooth and Kilcock. This will ultimately form part of a catchment flood risk assessment and management study for the entire Liffey catchment, which it is planned to undertake at a later stage.

Catchment flood risk assessment and management plans provide a strategic overview of a river catchment and a context within which decisions on the most appropriate measures to manage existing and potential flood risk can be made. Subject to availability of funds, works recommended by the study which are economically and environmentally sustainable will be funded by the Office of Public Works within its overall flood management programme.

Kildare County Council will continue with studies currently under way in Leixlip and its environs. In the context of this arrangement the OPW will be willing to consider with Kildare County Council whether elements of work recommended by the studies could be regarded with reasonable certainty as likely to be compatible with the recommendations of the Rye CFRAM study. The OPW is willing to consider providing funding to Kildare County Council to carry out such works if they can be shown to be economically and environmentally sustainable.