Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 18 February 2014
317. Deputy Brian Walsh asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide details of maintenance and flood prevention works undertaken by the Office of Public Works in the past 12 months on the Bulkawn River, Ballinrobe, County Mayo, including locations adjacent to the Neale Road bridge near the hotel on the Kilmaine Road; and if he will outline plans for works to be undertaken at these locations in 2014. [7978/14]
View answerOn four occasions during 2013 the Office of Public Works (OPW) undertook maintenance tasks on the Bulkaun River, Ballinrobe, County Mayo. This channel is part of the Mask-Robe arterial drainage scheme. The work largely involved weed cutting on various stretches of the river and clearing the bed of loose material at the Kilmaine Road bridge.
It is also significant that, in 2012, OPW maintenance staff carried out works on a 1,480 metre stretch of the river with a hydraulic excavator.
OPW had indicated that it would remove 150 mm from the weir west of the Neale road bridge subject to consent from all interested parties. This work did not proceed as the required consent was not forthcoming - a number of local residents raised objections to the proposal.
It is the intention of OPW to continue maintenance works with the weed boat in 2014 on the Bulkaun. The total number of weed boat runs on the river in a given year will be subject to resources available, but is expected to be not less than three.
