Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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110. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the additional financial measures he will employ in 2018 to develop flood defences across the State; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47242/17]

Kevin Moran (Longford-Westmeath, Independent)
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A total allocation of €101 million approximately for overall flood risk management has been provided in the 2018 Vote of the Office of Public Works (OPW) representing an increase of 35% on the equivalent 2017 Estimates allocation. This allocation primarily covers the costs of implementing flood defence capital works and the ongoing maintenance programme for completed Arterial Drainage Schemes. The 2018 total allocation includes a provision of €70m approximately for expenditure on flood defence works which is an increase of some €25m over the 2017 allocation. This significant increase is part of the commitment of €430 million for flood risk management under the Government's six year Capital Investment Plan 2016-2021 which will see the annual allocation for flood defence expenditure rise from €45m currently to €100million by 2021.

The 2018 allocation will allow the OPW to continue with its existing programme of major flood relief schemes which currently has ten schemes at construction with another 26 at different stages of design or planning. Over the next 12 months, the OPW hopes to commence the construction of another nine major schemes from this programme with a total value of over €230 million and these, along with the rest of the schemes in the programme will, when completed, provide flood protection to approximately 12,000 properties.

The 2018 allocation will allow for the continuation of the OPW's Minor Flood Works and Coastal Protection Scheme. This successful Scheme has allowed approximately 650 small scale local authority projects to be approved for funding at a cost of €40million, with completed projects to date providing flood protection to over 6,200 properties.

The OPW will also soon have completed its Catchment Flood Risk Assessment and Management (CFRAM) studies which have been undertaken throughout the country over the last number of years and which have concentrated on the areas of most significant flood risk. It is expected that the resultant Flood Risk Management Plans will be published in the near future once they have been approved by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. The Plans contain proposed flood defence works for approximately 140 additional areas at a projected cost of close to €600million and the projects arising from these Plans will start to be implemented on a prioritised basis from next year onwards.

Approximately 100 of these projects will be major schemes with the remainder falling into the minor works category which will enable the relevant Local Authorities to advance them reasonably quickly with funding being provided by the OPW.