Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)
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Question 1568: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if consideration has been given within his Department for making the local authority responsible for water quality in the Tramore river, which currently forms part of the Cork city boundary. [30105/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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My Department in conjunction with the EPA, local authorities and other agencies is also pursuing a comprehensive range of measures to protect and improve water quality generally in the context of implementation of the Water Framework Directive, the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive, the Nitrates Directive and related EU legislation. Under the European Communities (Water Policy) Regulations 2003, which transposes the Water Framework Directive, into national law, local authorities are required to take a coordinated approach to water management in respect of whole river basins with a view to preventing any deterioration in the existing status of any waters and achieving at least "good status" in relation to all waters by 2015. In this regard the river basin district projects, led by local authorities and funded by my Department, play a key role.

Local authorities are required to bring forward by 2008 proposals for River Basin Management Plans, including comprehensive programmes of measures, so as to achieve the environmental objectives laid down by the Water Framework Directive. The Tramore river is included in the South Western River Basin District Project, which is being led by Cork County Council.