Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 8 February 2022
262. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the specific commitments contained within the National Development Plan 2018-2027 to address coastal erosion by way of funding for coastal protection by county in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6280/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraLocal Authorities are responsible for coastal erosion in their own areas. The Local Authorities may carry out coastal protection works using their own resources. If necessary, they may also put forward proposals to the relevant Government Departments for funding of appropriate measures. Intervention or hard defences has the potential to cause problems further along the coast, any proposed intervention measures are best developed in conjunction with a formal coastal risk management study that has carefully investigated the problem and explored the full range of management options.
To assist Local Authorities in managing the coastline for coastal erosion, the OPW has undertaken a national assessment of coastal erosion (including erosion rates) under the Irish Coastal Protection Strategy Study (ICPSS) and the results of this study have been published on the OPW website floodinfo.ie. This data enables Local Authorities to develop appropriate plans and strategies for the sustainable management of the coastline in their counties.
Under the National Development Plan the Government has allocated €1.3bn to design and construct some 150 additional flood relief schemes to protect those communities, assessed to be at risk from significant flood events. This assessment of flood risk was completed, in 2018, by the OPW’s Catchment Flood Risk Assessment and Management Programme.
Sixty two of these schemes are in coastal locations. Of these, six are complete, three are at construction and a further thirty two are being progressed by the OPW and local authorities to identify a viable scheme design and through the planning process. Twenty one other schemes are part of the planned programme for delivering flood relief schemes under the National Development Plan. The details of these coastal flood relief schemes are in Table 1 attached.
The Minor Flood Mitigation Works & Coastal Protection Scheme (the “Minor Works Scheme”) was introduced by the Office of Public Works in 2009. The purpose of the scheme is to provide funding to Local Authorities to undertake minor flood mitigation works or studies to address localised flooding and coastal protection problems within their administrative areas. The scheme generally applies where a solution can be readily identified and achieved in a short time frame. Under the scheme, applications are considered for projects that are estimated to cost not more than €750,000 in each instance. Funding of up to 90% of the cost is available from the OPW for approved projects. The commencement and progression of any works for which funding is approved is a matter for each Local Authority concerned. Table 2 attached is a list of approvals under the Minor Works & Coastal Protection Scheme since 2009 which related to coastal locations.
The Government has established an Inter-Departmental Group on Managing Coastal Change to scope out an approach for the development of a national co-ordinated and integrated strategy to manage the projected impact of coastal change to our coastal communities. The Inter-Departmental Group is jointly chaired by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the OPW and will bring forward options and recommendations for the Government to consider.
