Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 26 September 2007
622 Deputy Catherine Byrne asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the efforts being made by his Department to clean up and maintain the Grand Canal and its banks; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19945/07]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that the responsibility for the maintenance of the Grand Canal lies with Waterways Ireland, a North/South Body, established under the British-Irish Agreement Act 1999, and co-sponsored by my Department and the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure in the North.
Maintenance and cleaning of the canal network is an operational matter for Waterways Ireland. Its staff carries out day-to-day maintenance, operation and cleaning duties including weed control (cutting and spraying), dredging, grass cutting, hedge cutting, towpath/bank maintenance and litter collection. The litter removal and grass cutting work is generally undertaken on a continuous basis with each section of canal being attended to on a rotating basis.
