Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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21. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport when consideration was first given to the possibility of locating the west Connemara base for the Coast Guard at the airstrip in Cluain Leacht an Abba, Cleggan, County Galway; the progress made to date with this project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55807/22]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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A new Coast Guard Station at Cleggan has been a priority on the IRCG Building Programme for a number of years.

The site at the air strip at Cleggan owned by Department of Regional and Community Development (DRCD) was one of the sites that were identified as possible viable options. 

OPW originally registered expression of interest in acquiring a site on the air strip with DRCD on behalf of IRCG in 2012. 

DRCD confirmed that there would be no issue with transfer of the site if deemed suitable.

OPW stated that any such transfer of land/ site would be dependent on planning approval.

OPW included this site in its investigations into suitable sites in the area and carried out an initial Feasibility Study during 2016.

Unfortunately, the IRCG were not in a position to fund progress of this project to the planning stage until increased funding was allocated to the IRCG Building Programme through the Project 2040 initiative in 2018.

There were then further delays to the Building Programme resulting from factors outside of IRCG control, including OPW resources issues and Pandemic restrictions.

During 2021, OPW progressed the feasibility study at the Air Strip further and completed a Draft Scheme.  This project was approved by OPW Project Oversight Group in September 2022 and now awaits  allocation of a full design and resource team to progress it to the planning phase. OPW are also in the process of arranging a meeting with DRCD to progress the site acquisition process. 

IRCG will continue to push this project as one of its top priorities on the IRCG Building Programme.