Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 14 November 2017
508. Deputy Jan O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the counties in which pyrite has been located; the way in which a person who suspects their home may have a pyrite problem can access information in cases in which this might be an issue in quarries in their area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47810/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraAn independent Pyrite Panel was established in September 2011 to explore options for a resolution to the problems caused by the presence of pyrite in the subfloor hardcore material which had manifested in dwellings in a number of local authority areas.
The Panel undertook a desktop study, in conjunction with a stakeholder consultation, to establish certain facts in relation to the potential exposure of pyrite in dwellings. The information was gathered from a number of sources including local authorities, structural guarantee providers, representatives of homeowners, private builders, construction professionals and public representatives and was cross referenced to verify, as far as practicable, its validity.
Seventy four estates were identified to the Pyrite Panel, as possibly having pyrite. At the time of the Report of the Pyrite Panel (June 2012), all of these estates were located in the five local authority areas of Dublin City, Fingal, Kildare, Meath and Offaly, although two estates were subsequently identified in 2014 as having pyrite problems, one each in the administrative areas of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and South Dublin County Council.
The Report of the Pyrite Panel (June 2012) recommended a categorisation system as a means of prioritising pyrite remediation works in recognition of the expensive and intrusive nature of pyrite remediation and the unpredictability of pyritic heave. The independent Pyrite Panel was clear in its view that only dwellings with significant damage due to pyritic heave should be remediated and that it would be unreasonable to expect dwellings not exhibiting such damage to be remediated. Dwellings which have no significant damage but have reactive pyrite in the hardcore material should be monitored and only remediated if they display significant damage due to pyritic heave. This remains the position with regard to dwellings which do not display significant pyritic damage.
The Pyrite Resolution Act 2013 provides the statutory framework for the establishment of the Pyrite Resolution Board and for the making of a pyrite remediation scheme to be implemented by the Board with support from the Housing Agency. The pyrite remediation scheme is a scheme of “last resort” and is limited in its application and scope. Further information on pyrite and the scheme are available on the Board’s website, www.pyriteboard.ie.
The Board may be contacted by phone at Lo call 1890 252842 or by email to info@pyriteboard.ie or alternatively at oireachtasinfo@pyriteboard.ie.
