Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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74. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the Office of Public Works is responsible for remedial works undertaken on waterways in the Cree, Doonbeg area of County Clare in summer 2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59582/22]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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The Office of Public Works (OPW) is responsible for the maintenance of arterial drainage schemes and flood relief schemes completed under the Arterial Drainage Acts, 1945 and 1995, as amended.

Arterial drainage maintenance is an ongoing programme of works of a cyclical nature, typically every four to six years. Each year, the OPW prepares an annual arterial drainage maintenance programme for each region that identifies the proposed maintenance locations within each arterial drainage scheme catchment area. The annual maintenance programme is informed by data gathered from a variety of sources, including maintenance records, observations from inspections and from information provided by members of the public. In addition to these planned maintenance activities, the OPW may also carry out maintenance work where necessary to address issues that come to its attention.

Under this cycle of maintenance there are works for silt and vegetation maintenance programmed each year throughout the Creegh Drainage Scheme. This year the OPW has carried out silt removal and vegetation management at a number of locations throughout the drainage scheme with planned works for the year recently completed.