Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 May 2014
310. Deputy Dan Neville asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his views on correspondence (details supplied) in County Limerick regarding flood defences; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22389/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraMany properties within the town of Adare, including the development mentioned by the Deputy, lie within the “Benefiting Area” or floodplain of the River Maigue Catchment Drainage Scheme (CDS) which is under the statutory care of the Commissioners of Public Works. The embankments protecting the Maigue Catchment floodplain were constructed to a standard to protect agricultural land from flooding and, as such, do not confer the level of protection usually associated with residential developments.
Considerable work has been done by the OPW in the last ten years to strengthen the embankments, and the Maigue CDS will continue to be maintained by the OPW to a standard above that for which it was originally designed.
Adare has been designated an Area for Further Assessment (AFA) under the Catchment Flood Risk Assessment and Management (CFRAM) study for the Shannon River Basin District. Under the CFRAM Study, work on draft flood maps for this location will be finalised, following public consultation, during 2014 and, following an examination of all options to reduce flood risk, Flood Risk Management Plans, which will include recommendations on both structural and non-structural flood mitigation measures, are due to be completed in 2015. Further information and updates on the Study are available via the project website www.shannoncframstudy.ie.
