TD questions flood preparedness in coastal areas
Sinn Féin TD for Louth, Ruairí Ó'Murchú, has questioned the government about its preparations for future flooding in coastal areas.
In a parliamentary question to Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Kevin Moran, Ó'Murchú asked where the Office of Public Works (OPW) stands in relation to natural flood management and other mitigations to protect property, in the face of the estimated rising sea levels.
In response, Minister Moran said the government recognises the risks associated with climate change, and that increases in sea levels and storm surges will result in more frequent coastal erosion.
"The OPW has commenced work programmes and projects to deliver on recommendations from the national coastal change management strategy report to develop the understanding of how our coast is evolving, identify areas prone to erosion, survey the coastline and coastal defences, and assess coastal change hazards and risks," Minister Moran said.
Minister Moran added that coastal erosion is "becoming a huge problem".
"I have seen it in the past, including when I served here with responsibility for the OPW, and I expect it in the future. It will be a major problem," he added.
Deputy Ó'Murchú told Agriland other parts of the world have "game-planned" for greater levels of flooding from rising sea levels.
The Sinn Féin TD said natural barriers in the land have been used to control flooding.
"The idea is that the flooding is controlled. They obviously agreed with the farmer [to use their land], the idea is to keep flooding away from housing," he said.
"How much have we looked at the dangers that exist? From coastal erosion to rising sea levels, how much are we going to address what we think, even at this stage, we are going to look at?
"I just wanted to see what we have done around looking at natural flood mechanisms and barriers, and that we are looking at the most innovative unnatural barriers also," he added.
Deputy Ó'Murchu noted that storm damage is going to become a more common occurrence.
"We’re going to get more emergency weather events. We need on-the-shelf schemes in place," he said.
"If we expect that there is going to be more of this, we need to be gaming or modelling it out. Then we look at the absolute best means of dealing with it. That will be regular flood protections, and natural flood protections that have been put in place in other parts of the world," he concluded.
