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Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 9 Dec 1986

Vol. 370 No. 9

Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - County Wicklow Lake.

27.

asked the Minister for Tourism, Fisheries and Forestry if his Department carried out any survey on the condition of the dam at Paddock Lake in County Wicklow, prior or subsequent to it being taken over by the Forestry and Wildlife Service; the results of any such survey; if there was any indication that repairs were required; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

There is no record in the Department relating to the condition of the dam prior to the acquisition, in 1954, or of the land on which it is situated. The dam was, however, thoroughly inspected by the Department's engineer as recently as 1981 and found to be structurally sound. Prior to that, and up to the time of its collapse, it had been inspected from time to time in the course of the normal management of the surrounding forest land and there was no indication that any repairs were necessary.

The Minister says that a survey was carried out in 1981. Has any maintenance been carried out to the dam since then and, if so, can he outline the nature of that maintenance?

As I said, the Department's engineer carried out the survey in 1981 in connection with improvements carried out by the Forestry and Wildlife Service to a road which runs over the dam. During that survey, the dam was inspected and found to be completely sound. Prior to 1981 and since then, routine inspections of the dam have been carried out by the local forest management and no structural faults were detected.

Despite the fact that no structural faults were found, was any maintenance whatsoever carried out on the dam since 1981 regardless of the structural conditions?

As I said, when the forestry officials carried out their inspection their inspectors obviously would have looked for structural faults and if some had been found, they would have been repaird but since there were none there was no need for any work to be carried out on the dam.

Do I take it that the answer is that no maintenance was carried out on the dam?

I said there were no structural faults in the dam.

No maintenance?

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