Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 July 2021
755. Deputy Cian O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the current position regarding the National Coastal Change Management Strategy Steering Group; the number of times the group has met since its formation; the current membership of the group; the issues it has considered; the timeline for the completing its work and publishing its strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40929/21]
View answerThe National Coastal Change Management Strategy Steering Group is jointly chaired by my Department and the Office of Public Works (OPW). The Group is comprised of senior officials from the Department of Communications, Climate Action and the Environment, the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Met Éireann, and the County and City Management Association. The Group met for the first time on 3 September 2020 and most recently met on 10 June 2021.
Further to the initial meeting of the Steering Group in September 2020, a technical working group was also established under the stewardship of the OPW. The work of this group has focused on the identification and initial analysis of data sources, to underpin the work of the Steering Group.
Since the initial meeting in September, the work of the Steering Group is being progressed through a series of bilateral meetings to scope out the extent of the issues, including, inter alia, the threats and effects of coastal change as they relate to the remit of the individual Steering Group members and the wider stakeholders.
To assist and support the work of the group in scoping out the extent of the issues, including, inter alia, the threats and effects of coastal change as they relate to the remit of the individual Steering Group members and the wider stakeholders, my Department and the OPW have been engaging in a series of bilateral meetings in the interim with relevant Departments and key stakeholders.
The intention of these bilateral meetings has been to give an opportunity to discuss the emerging work of the Group and to stimulate the most effective engagement of these key stakeholders. The meetings to date have been very useful in allowing for issues relating to coastal change management to be reflected upon and explored in the context of the particular operations of the participating organisations.
Following these engagement, I understand that the findings of the group are currently being compiled into a report which will be presented to Government later this year.
