I thank the Minister of State for coming to the Chamber to discuss this important issue.

Last Tuesday morning, I stood on Island Road in Enniscorthy, where yet again the River Slaney, which goes through the town, burst its banks and the water spilled out. I saw the residents of Island Road place all their belongings onto their kitchen and living room tables and get out jacks to jack them up to the ceiling in anticipation of the water coming in. We saw flooding that was unprecedented in our town. That is saying something because Enniscorthy has flooded 16 times since 2000. Yet, in spite of a visit by then President Michael D. Higgins in 2014, an allocation of €55 million to the Enniscorthy flood relief scheme in 2015 and the fact there is cross-party support and buy-in from all politicians locally and the community to the Enniscorthy flood relief scheme, we have not been able to deliver it.

There is enormous frustration in the town. This time the water was 4.8 m high. That is 5 ft of water running into businesses in Templeshannon and along Shannon Quay. It is scandalous at this stage. My understanding is that when the Department with responsibility for the Office of Public Works, OPW, made an application to the Minister for public expenditure, it was refused in 2022 because of the presence of the freshwater pearl mussel living under the old bridge in Enniscorthy. Due to environmental concerns about the impact on its habitat, the water could not be touched, walls could not be put in and the dredging could not be done, and the scheme was ultimately refused.

I would like to know for the people in Enniscorthy when the Enniscorthy flood scheme will happen. What barriers exist? What can be done? Can we get an update? This is absolutely heartbreaking. I was elected as a councillor for Enniscorthy in 2019. I was chair of the council in 2021 when the town flooded and I still have the same concerns I had then. Over the past 11 months as a Senator, I have repeatedly raised my concerns about the fact that every time heavy rain is forecast, the residents of Island Road and the owners of businesses on the quays look out and ask if it will happen again.

All of their worst fears were realised with a record-breaking flood. Can we please have an update and see where this project is at? What can we do to solve these problems in Enniscorthy?

I thank the Senator for raising this matter. I know we have all seen, along with the Minister, Deputy Browne, and the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, who cannot be here today, the devastation that flooding has on people, businesses and the Enniscorthy community. The town of Enniscorthy, unfortunately, has a long history of flooding, the most recent being this week, with previous events in 2000 and 2015. Flooding is a huge problem and leads to incalculable losses to people and a loss of a secure feeling as well.

The Government has introduced a range of supports this week. Correctly, the community, the Senator and the Minister, Deputy Browne, are seeking a long-term solution through a flood relief scheme. Following extensive engineering analysis, public consultation and environmental assessments, in March 2020, the OPW submitted the Enniscorthy food relief scheme for statutory confirmation. The main elements of the proposed scheme included the construction of flood defence walls and river channel widening and deepening. The scheme also included the removal of the Seamus Rafter Bridge and the construction of new and replacement road and pedestrian bridges over the Slaney.

In March 2022, the Minister made a decision to refuse this scheme consent. The decision was due primarily, as the Senator said, to concerns about the impact on the freshwater pearl mussel. The Minister at the time, Deputy Patrick O'Donovan, gave a commitment subsequently to deliver a flood relief scheme for Enniscorthy. I confirm that commitment today, and the aim of this Government is to provide protection not just to some 50 properties that were affected this week but to 326 properties at risk from flooding in Enniscorthy. All of them need protection.

The Minister of State, Deputy Moran, visited Enniscorthy last April and reaffirmed his commitment to deliver this scheme at a meeting with elected representatives. Given the refusal for planning consent, work had to be undertaken to look for alternative approaches to managing the flood risk from the scheme submitted for confirmation. There is also a requirement to investigate alternative options that consider the changes in policy and approaches to assessments that have occurred since the scheme was first designed. Since that time there has been extensive engagement between the OPW and Wexford County Council for an alternative flood relief scheme. At the end of 2023, the council submitted a proposed strategy for the progression of the scheme, which was approved by the OPW and comprises two phases. The main elements of the first phase of the scheme will include the construction of a new road bridge over the Slaney, construction of a new pedestrian bridge and the removal of the existing Seamus Rafter Bridge. Part 2 of the scheme will include the construction of the remaining flood relief measures for Enniscorthy town.

The project steering group is progressing both phases. On the design options for phase 1, an initial public consultation took place in quarter 2 of 2025 to present emerging options to the public. A second public consultation took place in November 2025. The development of the options report is now being progressed following feedback from the public. To help with a special planning application submission to An Coimisiún Pleanála, relevant environmental surveys are being updated and an environmental impact assessment report and Natura impact statement will be prepared. It is envisaged a planning application will be submitted to An Coimisiún Pleanála in quarter 2 of 2027. Prior to lodging a planning application, a maritime area consent application will be required from the Maritime Area Regulatory Authority, MARA, which is to be submitted in quarter 2 of this year.

With regard to phase 2, the county council and the Office of Public Works are finalising a project brief in order to issue a tender for the appointment of an engineering and environmental consultant. This will go to tender very soon. It is envisaged a consultant will be appointed in the first half of this year. A detailed programme for the overall scheme will be subsequently developed following the appointment of a consultant for phase 2. A flood relief scheme for Enniscorthy is supported by the Government's investment in flood relief measures through the national development plan. This funding has allowed the Government to treble the number of projects at design, planning and construction, including for Wexford town and Rosslare.

I thank the Minister of State for his response. I welcome the fact the €51 million allocated is still in place, but I have to stress the urgency of this. The residents and businesses in Enniscorthy are beyond frustrated at the lack of progress to date. I appreciate that there are significant regulatory concerns about the freshwater pearl mussel, but we need to rebalance the prioritisation here. The residents and the businesses in a town that has been flooded 16 times since 2000 have to be put as a priority ahead of the freshwater pearl mussel. Perhaps that is going to require legislative change. I will work with the Minister of State and anybody who can ensure that we get this flood scheme up and running for Enniscorthy.

I want to make a point about the phases. Phase 1 talks about the demolition of the Seamus Rafter Bridge in Enniscorthy. That is a bridge where water is flowing over it as well as under it. It was built too low in 1992, when it was put in. My concern is that even if the bridge is demolished and a much-needed new bridge is built, the reality remains that without dredging, glass barriers and significant attenuation areas further upstream, the town is still going to flood. My concern is that as long as the freshwater pearl mussel remains living under the old bridge, we are going to be caught in this cycle of applications, deadlines, rejections and repeated flooding for Enniscorthy. I will work with the Minister of State and the Government to ensure that whatever legislative change is needed regarding the freshwater pearl mussel, we will get there. I thank the Minister of State for coming in today

I agree with the Senator. I know that the Minister, Deputy Browne, agrees with the Senator that the town has lived with flood risks for too long. The consent refusal in 2022 was a setback for the town. I am working with the Minister, Deputy Browne, not to reduce environmental protection, because nobody wants to do that, but to reduce the bureaucracy that comes with planning and development in this country. We are engaging with European colleagues on this. There is a whole agenda in the European Union at the moment in terms of simplification and reducing the burden of rules. We want to protect the environment, nature and all of that, but all of these procedures take too long and are too complex. There are certainly occasions like this when the needs of human beings need to be prioritised. Let us see where this process goes. It is being treated urgently by the Government. I thank the Senator for raising the issue.