asked the Minister for the Environment the present position regarding the proposed water and sewerage scheme for Longford town and the Abbeyshrule water scheme; if an application has been made to the EC regional fund for grants for both schemes; and if there are any other applications before the EC regional fund for grants for any other type of infrastructural development in County Longford.
Written Answers. - County Longford Water and Sewerage Schemes.
75.
Longford town and its environs will be served by the Longford main drainage scheme. The eastern and north-eastern sections of this scheme have been constructed and the contract documents for that section which will complete the sewering of the town were approved by my Department in May 1983. The council's proposal for the acceptance of a tender is awaited in my Department.
Section 6 of the Longford central regional water supply scheme will provide a new and improved network of mains in Longford town. I approved the preliminary report for this section in August 1984 and the submission of contract documents by the council is awaited.
Both the Longford central regional water supply (other than section 6) and the Longford main drainage schemes have been the subject of grant applications to the European Regional Development Fund. Section 6 of the Longford central regional water supply scheme has not yet reached the stage at which it can be included in such an application. Other infrastructure projects in County Longford submitted for EC aid in 1985 are the Clondra-Ballyminnion road improvement scheme and the Granard water supply scheme.
The present position with regard to the Abbeyshrule group water schemes is that officers of my Department met group representatives on 18 September 1985 to outline the action required to bring this large scheme to the construction stage. My Department is in correspondence with the group about particular issues which arose at this meeting and will write again to the group shortly.
ERDF aid is not avaialble for private group water schemes, but 50 per cent of my Department's grant expenditure on eligible group water schemes in County Longford is recoupable from the European Commission under the FEOGA western package.