Edward Nealon
Question:84 Mr. Nealon asked the Minister for Finance the time which is required by statute or regulation from the time a design for the arterial drainage of a catchment area is posted until procedure to the next stage.
Written Answers. - Arterial Drainage Scheme Requirements.
Under Sections 5 and 6 of the Arterial Drainage Act, 1945 the Commissioners of Public Works are obliged to publish notice that they have prepared a drainage scheme and to send a copy of the drainage scheme to the relevant county councils which in turn must make it available for a period of one month for public inspection by any interested parties. A county council may submit observations in regard to a scheme within three months of publication. Simultaneously with publication of a scheme, notices are served on individual landowners to be affected by the proposed scheme and a period of one month is allowed for receipt of their observations.
After consultation with various Ministers all objections and observations received by the Commissioners must then be examined in detail and they may make such alterations to the scheme as they think proper prior to submitting it to the Minister for Finance. In effect, therefore, the exhibition process usually takes considerably longer than the statutory period provided in the Act.