Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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240. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development his plans to develop the canal system in a manner similar to the Wild Atlantic Way and or the Waterford greenway project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48642/17]

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Waterways Ireland, which comes under the remit of the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht is responsible for the development of several of the country’s main canals, including their development from an amenity perspective. The Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport has overall responsibility for the development of Greenways, such as the Waterford Greenway. 

Nonetheless, my Department implements a number of funding streams which have provided support for the development of outdoor recreation infrastructure linked to canals and greenways across the country. An example of this is the Royal Canal Waymarked Way in Longford, which was approved for €350,000 in funding under the Rural Recreation Infrastructure Scheme in 2017. This particular project is a collaborate effort between Longford County Council, Waterways Ireland and the Ballymahon Royal Canal Amenities Group, with the aim of improving the canal as a recreation amenity between Longford Bridge at Ballymahon and Cloonbreany Bridge, a section totalling 6.1Km in length.  

Further canal and greenway related projects may also be eligible for funding under future rounds of schemes operated by my Department, such as the Rural Recreation Infrastructure Scheme and the Town and Village Renewal Scheme.