Cathal Crowe
Question:359. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if foundations will be included in the IS 465 review with respect to the defective concrete blocks scheme. [22818/24]
View answerTuesday, 21 May 2024
Questions (359)
Written answers
I commenced the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022 (the Act) on 22 June 2023 which contains the enhanced grant scheme and adopted the related Regulations on 29 June 2023.
Arising from the Government Decision of 30 November 2021 in respect of the enhanced Defective Concrete Blocks (DCB) grant scheme, the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) was tasked with delivering a programme of work to address a number of technical items. An interagency DCB Technical Matters Steering Group has been established to inform and guide the NSAI review of a number of relevant standards including I.S. 465:2018, and the impact, if any on foundations and the effect, if any, of full cavity fill insulation on homes susceptible to defective blockwork.
A number of research proposals developed by the relevant NSAI Technical Committees, including research to investigate pyrrhotite oxidation in concrete blocks and the potential impact of deleterious materials on foundations, have been commissioned and are making good progress.
The NSAI is Ireland’s official standards body and is an autonomous body under the aegis of the Minister for Enterprise Trade and Employment. I understand they are working on drafting interim guidance that will take the form of an amendment to I.S. 465 to enhance the sampling and testing protocols within the standard. The NSAI have confirmed the amendment will serve as a step forward in the review and development process of I.S. 465 noting the full evaluation of I.S. 465 continues to be reliant on the delivery of the final outputs of key research projects.
Following the publication of any revised standard published by the NSAI, the DCB grant scheme will be reviewed at that point, in the event that such amendments are required.