Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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169. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the details of the funding provided by the Office of Public Works to each county council to carry out drainage maintenance works for in each of the years 2011 to date, in tabular form. [44716/15]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Office of Public Works (OPW) does not provide funding to Local Authorities to carry out drainage maintenance works.

The OPW carries out its own programme of Arterial Drainage Maintenance. A total of 11,500km of river channel form part of the Arterial Drainage Schemes, and approximately 730km of embankments. While new Arterial Drainage Schemes are no longer being undertaken, the OPW has a statutory duty to maintain the completed schemes in proper repair and in an effective condition. The annual maintenance programme typically involves some clearance of vegetation and removal of silt build-up on an average five-yearly cycle. The location of the Schemes undertaken throughout the country is provided in the spreadsheet below.

The purpose of the Arterial Drainage Schemes was primarily to improve the drainage of agricultural lands to enhance production. This typically involved lowering or widening river beds to facilitate the drainage and discharge of neighbouring lands and drainage channels. While not the primary purpose of the Schemes, they did also provide enhanced conveyance capacity where they passed through towns, villages and dispersed rural communities that in turn has reduced the flood risk to properties in these areas.

Drainage Districts are areas where drainage schemes to improve land for agricultural purposes were constructed under the Arterial Drainage Act, 1925. 170 Drainage District Schemes were established, covering 4,600km of channel. The statutory duty of maintenance for these schemes lies with the Local Authorities concerned.

Arterial Drainage Schemes