Midleton flood relief delays
Liam Quaide criticised the slow progress on flood relief after Storm Babet and asked what was being done for Midleton and nearby villages. The Taoiseach said interim works had begun, procurement issues had slowed some work, and the wider scheme was progressing, but the Chair ended the back-and-forth.
Last Saturday marked the second anniversary of Storm Babet. I attended a demonstration in Midleton to highlight the lack of progress in flood relief measures since that catastrophic event. I can see very clearly that individual staff in Cork County Council, the OPW and Arup are working very carefully and with great commitment in their efforts with flood relief but how can it be justified or even explained that so many residents and business owners in Midleton, Mogeely, Castlemartyr, Killeagh, Rathcormac, Ladysbridge and Whitegate and remain as exposed to flooding two years on from Storm Babet or from December 2015 when there was another catastrophic flood event? A flood gate scheme was announced by the then Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell, in October 2024. It is proceeding at a snail’s pace and the flood gates are of no use to residents of timber-framed dwellings such as those in Gleann Fia in Mogeely. There is no indication of when works will begin to protect our villages in east Cork. When are we going to see the ambition and urgency that is needed from the Government applied to flood relief in east Cork?
Comment on this
There are two aspects here. First of all, there is the interim works. I did see some progress on those when I attended - I think it was earlier this year - Midleton where there were embankments and, on the main street, protective gates were put in. My understanding is that the council has had procurement issues in terms of some of the materials that are required for the interim works.
In terms of the flood relief scheme more generally, that is going through a process. I wish it could be speeded up as quickly as possible. My understanding is that work has been completed or under way to protect 80% of at-risk properties through a €1.3 billion investment by Government for flood relief measures more generally. The Midleton flood relief scheme is a complicated scheme. The Deputy must be aware-----
Comment on this
What is there for these villages in particular?
Comment on this
In terms of the council, some people are now saying that the council should not have got the job to do the interim work but I think the council is probably best placed to do interim works in terms of any given department.