Tom Neville (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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612. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government when the final allocation of moneys will be made available to Limerick city and county council in relation to large project work for a group water scheme (details supplied) in County Limerick. [41560/17]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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Under my Department’s new Multi-Annual Rural Water Programme 2016 – 2018, there are six different funding measures. Measure 2 supports projects to make existing group water schemes more efficient in their operation (e.g. water conservation, network upgrades and source protection). Funding in 2017 under this measure is in the form of a block grant allocation to local authorities. Earlier this year my Department invited local authorities to submit bids, for funding in 2017, under the programme, including for Measure 2.

Interim funding allocations under the measure for 2017, totalling just under €2.8 million, were made to local authorities in June. The interim allocation to Limerick City and County Council was just under €90,000. This interim allocation approach is to ensure programme momentum by facilitating local authorities to progress works while the bids are being examined.

Final allocations under the measure for 2017, totalling just under €3.77 million, were made to local authorities last month. The final allocation to Limerick City and County Council was €140,000 (this includes the interim allocation).

The level of funding allocated to each local authority was derived based on my Department’s consideration of commitments to other measures under the programme, evaluation of the local authority’s bids and drawdown by local authorities last year. While specific schemes based on the bids (which included Kilfinny Group Water Scheme in the case of Limerick City and County Council) will have been considered in this context, the block grant allocations are not associated or linked to any specific scheme in any local authority.

It is a matter for Limerick City and County Council to consider applications from, and allocate this funding to, projects under this measure within their respective functional area.

Further consideration will be given to funding requests in 2018 under the measure.