John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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Question 178: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the need for Waterways Ireland to clean up the Grand Canal particularly in and around the graving docks at Camden Lock, Dublin 4; if he will request Waterways Ireland to take action on same as soon as possible; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24039/06]

John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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Question 179: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the need for Waterways Ireland to clean up canals; the cleansing works taking place; the funds available for this; if he will request Waterways Ireland to deal with same matter as soon as possible; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24040/06]

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 178 and 179 together.

Maintenance and cleaning of the Canal network is an operational matter for Waterways Ireland, who inform me that they carried out a major clean up of the area in and around the site of the large graving dock at Ringsend Basin on 30 May 2006. The site, known locally as Heiton's Yard, contained remnants of old boats and general rubbish and the material was loaded into skips and removed to an approved landfill site.

In relation cleaning of the canals in general, I am informed that Waterways Ireland employs dedicated Operational Staff who are responsible for the upkeep of the canal network. These staff carry out day-to-day maintenance, operation and cleaning duties including weed control (cutting and spraying), dredging, grass cutting, hedge cutting, towpath/bank maintenance and litter collection. The litter removal and grass cutting work is generally undertaken on a continuous basis with each section being attended to on a rotating basis. In 2005, approximately €7.57m was spent on maintaining the Canals. Approximately €2.88m has been expended for this purpose to date in 2006.