Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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91. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform when it is expected that work will commence on drainage works, and so on, on the River Clare in Claregalway in County Galway, in view of the fact the Commissioners for Public Works first submitted the works for approval to him in November 2013; the reason for the delay in these works; when they will be completed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17047/15]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As indicated in my replies to previous Questions on this subject, the Office of Public Works (OPW) has submitted the proposals for the Clare River (Claregalway) scheme for statutory approval by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, as required by the Arterial Drainage Acts.

In order to comply with the requirements of SI 469 and SI 470 of 2012, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER) engaged experts to carry out an independent environmental assessment in the form of an evaluation of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) that was prepared by the OPW for the proposed Claregalway scheme. The report on the independent evaluation has been received by DPER and that Department is currently considering the report and expects to make a decision on the scheme in the coming weeks.

The commencement of works is therefore dependent on the outcome of this decision and it is expected their duration would be in the order of 18 to 24 months.

I wish to re-affirm that the OPW remains committed to carrying out the scheme, subject to the Minister's sanction, and has provided for its cost in its multi-annual capital expenditure profiles to 2017.