I wish to thank the Chair for affording me the opportunity of raising this matter on the Adjournment. I thank the Minister of State for attending. There is widespread concern and anxiety throughout the parish of Gweedore as to the future of the turf generating station. This station has been operational since 1958 and during that time has provided a livelihood and an income for 200 to 300 families in this impoverished Gaeltacht region.
At present there are 30 employees in the station and almost 200 families provide the turf that is harvested locally, generating an income of almost £1 million annually in an area with the highest unemployment figures in the country.
Last year, the board of the ESB recommended the closure of the station. Emergency meetings of workers and suppliers were arranged which resulted in a five to seven year development plan being submitted to the then Minister, Deputy Molloy, and at the end of that time the future and viability of the station could again be reviewed.
Since then the only response to the development plan has been a brief press release stating that the station may be given another year or two. The Minister should clarify the following points tonight: what are the exact plans for the future of the station; is the development plan and its timescale being accepted by the Government and the ESB and is the station being wound down at present and closing completely at the end of 1994? Immediate clarification is urgently needed tonight to restore the confidence of both the employees and turf suppliers.
The closure of that facility in Gweedore would be a devastating blow to the economic fabric of west Donegal, a region already hard hit by unemployment and emigration.
The Minister should guarantee undertakings already given by his predecessors that the station will be left open so long as the people of west Donegal continue to produce the necessary quota of turf towards its efficient operation.