Irish Water has submitted plans to the county council for a major upgrade of the sewerage network in Athenry.
The project would involve decommissioning the existing combined sewer overflow at North Gate street in the town centre, and replacing the sewers from the Cuirt Ard/Caheroyan Road junction to the Caheroyan Pumping Station.
That pumping station is to be decommissioned and completely removed, and a new station will be built adjacent to Pairc na hAbhainn housing estate.
New sewers starting at North Gate will be laid to the new pumping station, as will a new sewer from the site of the decommissioned station, both of which will cross the River Clarin.
A rising main will go from the new pumping station to the Athenry Wastewater Treatment Plant.
The “package wastewater treatment plant” currently on the site of the new pumping station will be removed, and a new sewer laid from the small estate in Raheen, passing through Presentation College and Clarin College sites to connect to the Athenry Wastewater Treatment Plant.
One submission was made by the Department of Housing, Local Government, and Heritage, stating that the preliminary assessment of zones of archaeological interest, and potential impacts on protected monuments, was not sufficient.
The Department said that a detailed Archaeological Impact Assessment should be carried out, with test excavations supervised by a qualified archaeologist, as well as assessment of potential impacts on underwater areas of archaeological interest.
A Natura Impact Statement has been prepared to be submitted with this application.
Galway County Council is currently due to make a decision on this planning application by December 23 of this year.
