Ciara Conway (Waterford, Labour)
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451. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if consideration is being given to investing in an advance warning system for Ireland in view of the recognised threat posed by earthquakes and plate tectonic movements which could result in a large scale and potentially devastating tsunami on a small island nation; the work that has been done on this to date; when we can expect such a system to be in place; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7471/14]

Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Ireland lies in a geologically stable part of the world, far removed from active plate tectonic boundaries. Tsunami-generating earthquakes have occurred in the wider north Atlantic region and hazard assessments by the Geological Survey of Ireland indicate that there is a small threat to Ireland from such events. Tsunami threats to Ireland include; a repeat of the 1755 magnitude 8.6 Lisbon earthquake, which GSI-commissioned modelling predicts could generate waves up to 4m high on the southern Irish coastline (see ); the seismic zone responsible for this earthquake, and a similar one in 1761 that also produced a tsunami, is a fault zone called the Azores-Gibralter fracture that continues to be active and has had a few relatively large but non-tsunamigenic earthquakes in recent years; the 1755 and 1761 tsunamis were the last authenticated tsunami impacts on the Irish coast. Other potential tsunami generating events would include earthquakes along the Caribbean plate margin, submarine landslides and volcanic activity in the Canaries. To date modelled wave sizes for Ireland are less than those predicted in 100 year flood mapping and considerably less than those that recently occurred due to Atlantic storms.

The international nature of ocean waters dictate that a co-operative international approach is the most appropriate response to the development of early warning systems and efforts in this regard are being coordinated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in the case of the North East Atlantic and Mediterranean. This international effort is currently being led by partners in France, involving partners throughout the Atlantic region and is expected to take some time. My Department is coordinating the engagement of national partners in this project and Ireland contributes seismic and sea level data to that system and participates in communications exercises in preparation for assimilation of tsunami warning into the national emergency management system.