As the Deputy is aware, Galway County Council is the responsible authority for the maintenance and development of infrastructure on the Aran islands.
The development of the pier on Inis Oírr is listed amongst the strategic objectives set out in Project Ireland 2040. A steering committee consisting of representatives from my Department, Galway County Council and the Consulting Engineers has been meeting generally every two weeks to monitor progress.
The Department has approved the business case for the development of the pier and Galway County Council is now in the process of resolving a number of pre-construction issues prior to issuing a request for tenders for the development. These issues include: preparing CPO applications, development of bye-laws for the regulation of the pier and the application for a foreshore licence.
The Council has published a draft of the bye-laws and has collated submissions received from the public and is currently preparing a report based on those submissions. The CPO applications are also being finalised.
It is the Sponsoring Agency, Galway County Council in this case, rather than my Department, that engages with the Foreshore Unit in the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
I understand that following the application for a foreshore licence and consultation with the Foreshore Unit, Galway County Council is undertaking a gap analysis study to ascertain the additional information needed from the original environmental reports that were submitted a number of years ago and to bring those reports up to current requirements. It is estimated that this will be completed in early May.
