Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

75. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his plans to implement the recommendations made in the Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht's report on River Shannon flooding published in 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41050/15]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The July 2012 Report of the Joint Committee on the Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht on Shannon flooding included eight proposals to tackle flooding on the Shannon. These proposals covered a number of issues across a range of Government Departments and State Bodies. The Office of Public Works (OPW) responded to the Committee by way of a written reply in September 2012, both welcoming the Committee’s Report and the OPW’s approach to addressing the specific matters within the OPW's area of responsibility.

The Shannon Catchment Flood Risk Assessment and Management (CFRAM) Study is the Office of Public Works' core strategy for addressing flood risk in the Shannon basin. I am advised that good progress continues to be made on the Study. A total of 66 locations along the Shannon, covering an area of 17,800 square kilometres, have been identified for further assessment under the Study, which is being undertaken by engineering consultants on behalf of the OPW with the involvement of relevant local authorities. A programme of local public consultation days on the draft predictive flood mapping for these locations concluded in April 2015. A national public consultation on the draft flood maps will commence tomorrow, 20 November and run until 23 December 2015.

Further details on the Shannon CFRAM Study are available on the Study website www.shannoncframstudy.ie. Following the finalisation of the flood mapping and the assessment of appropriate flood risk management options, the final output from this important project will be integrated plans containing specific measures to address in a comprehensive and sustainable way the significant flood risk factors in the Shannon basin.

The Flood Risk Management Plans due to be completed by the end of 2016, will include a prioritised list of measures, both structural and non-structural, to address flood risk in an environmentally sustainable and cost effective manner. The Plans will be used to determine national priorities for State investment in flood defences, on a systematic and objective basis that takes into account social and environmental factors as well as economic criteria.