Written answer
Flood Risk Management
The OPW has no plans for a Dower River gauge, while Cork County Council will assess the feasibility of installing monitoring equipment.
452. Deputy Noel McCarthy asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation if his Department will explore the possibility of installing a river level gauge at a location (details supplied). [65944/26]
Comment on this
The Office of Public Works (OPW) operates a hydrometric network to support national flood risk management objectives. Data from the OPW hydrometric network can be accessed in real-time via the website www.waterlevel.ie and the full hydrometric data archive can be accessed via the website www.waterlevel.ie/hydro-data.
There is significant demand for hydrometric monitoring nationwide, and it is only possible to monitor a limited number of catchments, mainly those that are progressing through the flood risk management programme.
With respect to hydrometric monitoring in the vicinity of the Dower River at Mogeely, County Cork, the OPW already operates a monitoring station (Station reference 19115, Killamucky) on the nearby Kiltha River in support of the Castlemartyr Flood Relief Scheme.
The Dower catchment at Forrest’s Farm, Mogeely, that has been referenced in the correspondence has not been identified for hydrometric monitoring through the flood risk management programme to date. Currently, the OPW do not plan to establish hydrometric monitoring on the Dower River at Forrest’s Farm, Mogeely.
Cork County Council have advised the OPW that they will review and assess the feasibility of installing river-level monitoring equipment at the location or other suitable locations on the Dower River.