Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein)
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227. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if she will instigate a technical assessment of the blowout in sand dunes at Banna Strand and Carrahane Strand in County Kerry with a view to preventing the environmental disaster which would result in a breach of the dunes at a point where only 10 m of dune remain, threatening the homes and farmland behind it with flooding by seawater; and if she will arrange for the filling of the dunes to prevent this. [10111/15]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Local flooding and coastal issues are a matter for Local Authorities to investigate and address in the first instance and it is open to Kerry County Council (KCC) to carry out flood mitigation and coastal protection works using its own resources.

The Office of Public Works (OPW) operates a Minor Flood Mitigation Works and Coastal Protection Scheme. This administrative Scheme's eligibility criteria, including a requirement that any measures are cost beneficial are published on the OPW website, www.opw.ie. It is not available for repair of damaged infrastructure or for maintenance of existing flood defence or coastal protection assets. A Local Authority may apply to the OPW for support under the scheme having regard to those eligibility criteria. Application forms are available on OPW's website under Flood Risk Management and decisions are made having regard to the overall availability of funding for flood risk management.