Because of the seriousness of this problem, and the anxiety of the people in the northwestern end of my constituency, I feel it is time to see if I can focuse the attention of the Government and get them to start to consider and examine what is at stake. For that reason, I asked the Minister for Finance today:
...whether he has under consideration the survey of that portion of the Corrib catchment area known as the Corrib-Mask section of the Galway-Mayo borders, which was cut out; and, if so, what are the prospects of having this work completed so that work may be continued on the completion of the whole scheme as originally intended.
I was rather shaken when I listened to the reply given to me by the Parliamentary Secretary which reads:
The survey of the Corrib-Mask catchment will be undertaken as soon as opportunity offers but at present I cannot say when we will be able to reach it. Having regard to our present commitments, I fear that it will not be possible to have the scheme ready to proceed on completion of the works at present in progress on the Corrib-Clare scheme.
That was about the first time I had heard the name of the Corrib-Clare used, in so far as this catchment was concerned. I was anxious to find out the reason why this area was left out originally. I asked the Parliamentary Secretary the following supplementary Question:
Can the Parliamentary Secretary tell me the reason, if any, for the decision to by-pass the most flooded area in the catchment?
His reply was:
I would not agree that it was decided to by-pass this area but it would appear that this section was included in the original catchment and at some stage it was decided to postpone it.
Everybody realises that postponements are dangerous and I take it the term "postponed" is just another way of saying "by-passed" because nothing can convince me—and I do not know anybody who could convince the people of this area—that it was not deliberately by-passed. The catchment area is something that was created by God Himself, and it cannot be split up as it is a particular type of unit.
The scheme was originally outlined to cover, in addition to the Clare-Corrib end, the Mask which covers part of Connemara, the north west portion of my constituency and a pretty big area in the south east Mayo end on the Shrule side. How at that time the eyes of anybody could be closed to this serious problem is more than I can understand. In 1947— everybody will recollect that was one of the wettest years in our history— areas were flooded which people never before saw flooded. The area, to give a brief outline, comprises Ballintleva, Caherlistrane, Headford, Killnamanagh down to Kilconley and then back around to Shrule.
The problem there is equal to the problem of the Shannon, and that is saying a big thing, but the difference between this area and the Shannon is a big difference. The Shannon is a problem on which thousands of pounds have been spent in bringing in foreigners to try to relieve it. It is a problem which has engaged and continues to engage the attention of the people of Ireland year after year. The Army are brought to their assistance to help to relieve people along the flooded Shannon area. The Shannon is bordered by the counties of Offaly, Roscommon, Galway and, I think, Longford and Westmeath. That is a very big area. Those counties are all deeply interested and, of course, I suppose the politicians are not very slow in raising their voices about it.
Here in this Corrib-Mask area we have, as I have said, a problem equal to that of the Shannon. I have some figures with me relating to that problem. In 1947, nine families had to leave their homes and some of them could never return because the houses fell down shortly afterwards. Twelve families lost their crops entirely—12 apart from the nine who also lost their crops. A further 35 families suffered serious losses. I think that indicates very clearly the serious problem which exists there.
We had, at that time, no funds to call upon. I was one of the people mainly responsible for organising a committee which set out, as the saying goes, with our hats in our hands, to try to collect a fund for the relief of those people. We met with fairly generous support and people contributed even better than we expected. We had to find housing accommodation for many of these families. We provided bedding for them and we had to find accommodation for their livestock. We had to bring other comforts to the people and we had to bring food to many whose potatoes were covered by the floods.
I have said that the Shannon flood situation is a problem but this is not. That is the difference between the two. This is something that could have been solved quite early by allowing the catchment area stand as it was. What I am trying to find out from the Parliamentary Secretary is: why was part of the catchment dropped? Why was the most flooded portion of the whole catchment—and the most flooded portion of any part of Ireland outside the Shannon—dropped altogether? I have no doubts as to why it happened and I know many people who think with me.
We are pressing to-day to get the Government to bring forward this scheme and to try to have it, as it should have been, included in the original scheme. My effort to-night and the efforts of the people I represent are to try to get the Government to go ahead as fast as they possibly can. That is why I am making a special appeal to the Parliamentary Secretary. We are all very much afraid that if the machinery moves out from the present Corrib-Clare scheme, it will not be an easy job for us to get it back.
The Parliamentary Secretary said today: "Having regard to our present commitments,I fear that it will not be possible to have the scheme ready to proceed on the completion of the works at present in progress on the Clare-Corrib scheme." I had been watching the development in regard to drainage. I saw the survey of the Moy started. Later, I saw the survey of the Suck started. During all that time I realised that all those things were being done at the expense of the Corrib-Mask portion of the Corrib catchment area.
I have an idea that Deputies and I suppose Senators and everybody who used their influence from other counties had come to this conclusion. I suppose they were perfectly right in forming the opinion that, because of all the propaganda that had been made out of the Corrib, because of all the big lettering on the walls and on the streets of certain towns in my area, any Deputy or other interested person passing through would be fully convinced that all the money in Ireland was being squandered in County Galway.
