Galway East TD Anne Rabbitte has said that government departments need to deliver a realistic timeframe for the delivery of flood relief schemes in the county.
The Fianna Fáil TD has said that the OPW and Department of Public Expenditure need to prioritise flood defence projects in vulnerable areas of Galway in the coming months to protect against extreme weather events.
“There are still homes and farms flooded or rebuilding due to damage from flooding across Galway,” she said.
“These families are in this position from a lack of robust flood defence schemes and they need Government protection.”
Galway suffered from extreme flooding in recent weeks after a long period of terrible weather which blocked large number of roads and has flooded huge amounts of farmland.
Many voices are concerned that it could be weeks or months yet before farmers in Galway affected by flooding are able to get fully back to work on the land.
While immediate protection is needed for people dealing with flooding right now, long term measures are also required to prevent re-occurrences Anne Rabbitte insists.
Modelling on the Gort Lowlands Flood Relief Scheme is close to completion she said, which will inform the feasibility assessment and route selection parts of the scheme.
These are also ongoing, and are expected to be completed by mid-2020 Rabbitte added.
Deputy Rabbitte said that she also has concerns about the Portumna Scheme, with little progress made since it was published in 2018.
“There is a ten-year time frame from this plan but any resident in Portumna will tell you they cannot afford to wait eight more years without a robust flood relief scheme.”
A more realistic timeframe for its delivery is needed to protect at risk homes, farms, and businesses that are living in fear of flooding daily, Rabbitte said.
