I thank Deputies Callanan, Connaughton and McHugh for raising this important issue and express the sympathy of the Government to everyone affected by the recent landlslides in County Galway. This has been a traumatic time for everyone involved.
I will outline to the House the position on the landslides as has been communicated to my Department from Galway County Council. A landslide occurred in the townland of Derrybrien north, County Galway, in the Slieve Aughty Mountains at a location approximately 17 km east of the town of Gort. The slippage commenced on the afternoon of Thursday, 16 October on a site being developed as a wind farm by Hibernian Wind Power, a subsidiary of ESB International. Galway County Council was notified of the slippage by an engineer from ESB International. The Minister, Deputy Cullen and I were both notified of the situation by our colleague, Deputy Treacy, who together with my party colleague, Deputy Callanan, has been in constant touch with my Department regarding this serious issue.
Galway County Council's senior executive engineer for the area went to the site that evening and arranged to have the local road, 8211, closed to the public. Council staff also erected a barrier to halt the progress of the slide and took some measures to filter silt from the waters coming from the slippage material. The situation was constantly monitored by the county council and on Saturday, 18 October an examination from the air and ground was carried out by senior engineering personnel from the county council. An environmental monitoring regime with respect to waters downstream of the landslip has been in place since 18 October.
Following an initial preliminary assessment of the area by geotechnical experts from NUI Galway, the county council appointed BMA GeoServices, a firm of experienced consultants with geotechnical expertise, to carry out a comprehensive investigation of the landslip events, the draining of the wind farm site and its effects on slope stability and the effect of rainfall stability. The firm commenced work on the site on 25 October and provided its preliminary report for the county council on 3 November.
The county council also met ESB International and Hibernian Wind Power on 28 October. The company representatives undertook to carry out all remediation works and accept responsibility for them. They accepted and undertook to co-operate with the county council's regulatory and monitoring role. They informed the county council of a proposed action plan, the outlines of which include: a geotechnical survey of the complete site; establishment of monitoring points measuring the thickness of peat; re-establishing all pre-existing drainage paths; proposals for remediation works which, in the first instance, addressed the existing landslides; cessation of all construction works on the wind farm – these will not resume until the stability of the area can be assured while the Health and Safety Authority has been informed of the situation; and the developers to carry out a review of their construction methodology and complete it before any further works might take place in connection with the development of the wind farm. An official of my Department also met ESB International and Hibernian Wind Power on 31 October, at their request, to receive a briefing from the companies on the situation and the steps they were taking to control the landslide.
The landslide now extends for a distance of approximately 3.2 km, having crossed the local road, 8211, and passed under a bridge known as Flaggy Bridge, on the Regional road, R353, from Gort to Portumna. No inhabited dwellings have been affected by the landslide but one unoccu pied house is surrounded by peat and an outhouse associated with that dwelling, has been demolished. Some damage has been caused to parapet walls at Flaggy Bridge, on the R353.
Galway County Council continues to monitor and respond to the landslide in co-operation with all local interests. The slide has been halted and it is hoped to reopen the R353 which has been closed since 30 October. Measures such as the creation of silt ponds are being taken to minimise potential pollution to Lough Cutra.
As indicated to the House in replies to Questions Nos. 673, 674 and 711 yesterday, my Department will maintain liaison with and support, as appropriate, the efforts of Galway County Council in dealing with the causes and effects of the landslide at Derrybrien. My Department will also remain in touch with Galway County Council in regard to any necessary works to reinstate public roads or bridges in the area.
Regarding the effect on public water supplies, I understand that the extraction point for the Gort water supply scheme is located more than 6 km downstream on Lough Cutra on the Ceannahowna River. The supply from the river is supplemented by boreholes located in the town itself, which are unaffected by recent events. Galway County Council is reasonably confident that because of the distance involved and the fact that the river goes underground for some time after leaving Lough Cutra, the Gort water supply should not be adversely affected. In the event that water quality in the river is affected, the council has contingency plans which would involve cutting off the river intake, maximising supply from the boreholes – which provide about 30% of the town's current needs – and tankering in water to deal with any shortages. The council will also consider tankering water to households closer to the scene of the landslide if the need arises. The council is monitoring the position on the ground and is ready to put the water supply contingency plans into operation immediately, should it become necessary.
In addition to public water supply sampling, regular monitoring samples have been taken by the council along the stretch of the affected waterway and further downstream as appropriate. The Shannon Regional Fisheries Board has also undertaken a wide sampling programme and taken preventative action where possible. It will conduct a full assessment of the river in order to ascertain the full scale of the fish kills. The river habitat is expected to take some time to recover. However, a habitat rehabilitation programme can be put together locally and ESB International has indicated it will assist with the resources required for this, as well as any expansion of the water monitoring programme, required by Galway County Council.
The council reports that no homes have as yet been affected by the landslide. However, it has contingency plans in place should things change and my Department would refund to the council 90% of the costs of alternative accommodation in such circumstances.
I am satisfied that the efforts of the council and all relevant State agencies, as well as the action plan of ESB-Hibernian Wind Power, should provide strong reassurance to the local community that its immediate concerns are being addressed to the greatest possible extent. The outcome of investigations and reviews will inform the rehabilitation of the environment in the area and its future protection. Of course we will keep the House informed in this regard. I pay tribute to Galway County Council for the trojan work it is doing.
The Dáil adjourned at 9.25 p.m. until 10.30 a.m. on Thursday, 6 November 2003.