I wish to share my time with my constituency colleague, Deputy Hugh Byrne.
Adjournment Debate. - Rosslare (Wexford) Strand.
Is that satisfactory? Agreed.
Rosslare Strand is one of our most valuable home holiday resorts with exceptionally fine facilities, including hotels, golf courses, caravan parks and so on, all constructed around the initial attraction, a very fine, safe, sandy beach. Rosslare Harbour, a few miles further south, is one of our most important sea ports with exceptionally fine facilities and is a credit to Iarnród Éireann, the port authority for whom it makes a handsome profit.
The problem relates to the fact that the construction of the new piers and the works in Rosslare Harbour to accommodate the modern facilities for the ferry companies, and their passengers, has resulted in the starvation of Rosslare Strand of beach nourishment by interfering with the natural tidal flows and sea currents which for centuries replenished the beach on an ongoing basis.
Technical people and experts on both sides of the island have failed to agree on the cause of the sudden deterioration of Rosslare beach over the past decade or two. However, the erosion of the beach corresponded with the development of the port. On 4 November 1982 the Government issued a decree to CIE to make beach nourishment available for Rosslare Strand and on 16 November 1982 a letter sent by the marine division of the Department of Transport to the Secretary of Wexford County Council stated:
The Government at its meeting of 4 November 1982 decided that costs arising from the provision of transportation of beach material to counter coastal erosion at Rosslare Strand should be borne as to 80 per cent by CIE and as to 20 per cent by Wexford County Council.
At this stage the erosion of Rosslare beach was critical and a breach of the dunes was imminent with potential losses of millions of pounds worth of property not to mention the threat to lives and to Wexford harbour and town. That Government decision was followed by maintenance works by the Office of Public Works and then by the Department of the Marine on an agreed programme of coastal protection and the provision every three years of sand by CIE for beach nourishment.
The last beach nourishment programme was in 1989. A similar programme was due last year but was deferred for one year at the request of the Department of the Marine to allow for the construction of rock groynes to hold the beach. So far this year there is no evidence of any work on the beach. I understand that work is due to recommence in September, a most unsuitable time of the year as calm seas are needed to allow for the deposit of the beach material successfully from the seaward approach to the beach. I understand that Iarnród Éireann is now jibbing and objecting to paying this year's contribution to the provision of beach nourishment, as the Department of the Marine is looking for substantial increased sums this year — approximately three times the normal amount. I estimate that to be about £300,000 this year, from Iarnród Éireann.
I want an assurance from the Minister that Iarnród Éireann will not be released from its contract this year even from the payment of this increased sum, or released at any stage for as long as Rosslare Harbour exists, as the harbour will continue to starve the beach of natural replenishment. Will the Minister indicate to Iarnród Éireann before its board meeting next Wednesday that any change in the present contract will not be entertained by the Government? The Minister should endeavour to bring forward this year's coast protection programme from September to July to ensure efficient and effective expenditure on the beach, a beach that is again deteriorating but which can be saved by a construction and nourishment programme.
Mr. Byrne
I thank Deputy Doyle for giving me an opportunity to agree whole-heartedly with her argument. The building of groynes is essential. To date they have been very successful in gathering sand and in protecting the beach. Work has not commenced this year and we do not know why. I support the call for beach nourishment to be supplied by CIE and for the Department of the Marine to proceed immediately with the lengthening of the groynes.
I am delighted the Deputies have raised this important issue. I am glad the Minister for Health is present as he has put me under pressure since I took up my portfolio in regard to this issue.
The Minister of State is just covering the Minister's butt.
Rosslare Strand has a history of erosion going back to at least the turn of the century. Extensive protection works were undertaken by the Office of Public Works in the 1950s and by the 1970s their operations were winding down. However, in the late 1970s the situation deteriorated. An Office of Public Works investigation around that time indicated that the undermining of previously completed protection works and consequent ingress of the sea were unlikely to occur in a single event. The process of erosion takes the form of isolated, individual breaches of the defences, which it may be possible to repair, but at considerable cost. In time the position would gradually worsen along the entire extent of the sea defences, leaving them vulnerable to serious breaches and possibly an irretrievable situation in so far as the property at risk is concerned.
Detailed examinations have indicated that the most effective method of counteracting the erosion problem at Rosslare Strand is the phased undertaking of rock groyne construction, extending from the beach into the sea, and filling the areas between the groynes with suitable coarse nourishment.
To this end, the rock groyne construction commenced in 1991 and continued during 1992. The groynes, which have been built at right angles to the beach and extending into the sea are designed to trap passing beach nourishment from the natural movement of sand along the coast with the tides. This work will be continued during 1993. It is proposed to construct six rock groyne extensions. The element of the project has been put to open tender and it is expected that a contract will be placed within the next few weeks. Associated with the rock groynes construction is the beach nourishment programme to raise beach levels and prevent down drift erosion. A considerable quantity of nourishment will be required for this phase of the project. However, the groynes must be constructed in the first instance to hold the nourishment to be provided.
Funding for this project will be provided by the Department of the Marine, Wexford County Council and the EC. A contribution towards the cost of beach nourishment will also be required of Irish Rail. Discussions on this contribution are currently taking place. EC funding is available through the ECOPRO project. ECOPRO-environmentally friendly coast protection — is a joint operation between a number of Irish bodies — Clare, Wexford, Waterford and Kerry County Councils, Coastwatch Europe, Eolas and the Department of the Marine; a number of northern Ireland bodies — the Department of the Environment, the University of Ulster and The National Trust; and also the Danish Coast Authority. The objectives of the ECOPRO project are to assess the vulnerability of the coast to change, including erosion, to consider the need for protection and to examine the performance and environmental impact of existing coastal protection works, including a demonstration project. Rosslare Strand has been chosen as the Irish demonstration site.
The ECOPRO project will produce a methodology for future protection needs, a code of practice for the planning, installation and performance monitoring of low cost protection and a source of information for managerial purposes. ECOPRO encompasses the whole concept of coastal zone management, looking beyond individual projects and embracing the concept of comprehensive coastal planning. It is an excellent example of the close co-operation now taking place between the Department of the Marine and coastal local authorities in the planning and management of all aspects of the coastal zone.
The Minister will not allow Iarnród Éireann off the hook?
We do not let anyone off the hook.