Rory O'Hanlon
Question:100 Dr. O'Hanlon asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands the position on the refurbishment of the Ulster Canal; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24701/99]
Written Answers. - Inland Waterways.
A feasibility study into the reopening of the Ulster Canal, which was jointly commissioned by the Rivers Agency of Northern Ireland and Dúchas, the Heritage Service of my Department, was published in August, 1998. This comprehensive study concluded that the re-opening of the Ulster Canal is feasible but it would be a large engineering project estimated to cost some £68.4 million sterling, at 1997 prices, and the works stage alone would take at least four years.
In publishing this study, I stated that, while it could open the way to an imaginative joint restoration project with benefits to communities on both sides of the Border, there are major financial, legal and environmental considerations to be addressed by both Governments.
The British-Irish Agreement Act, 1999, passed earlier this year by both Houses of the Oireachtas but yet to be brought into force pending the setting up of the Northern Ireland Executive, provides for the establishment of Waterways Ireland, a North-South implementation body for inland waterways, and one of its immediate functions will be to "take forward appropriate studies and appraisals in relation to the possible restoration of the Ulster Canal". This is the appropriate mechanism for progressing the matter and I hope that Waterways Ireland will be established shortly.