FLOOD PREVENTION:THE GOVERNMENT is to introduce two policy initiatives over the next 18 months in an attempt to respond to extreme weather events.
New planning guidelines specifically dealing with flood prevention are expected to be published by Minister for the Environment John Gormley in the autumn. The initiative has been in planning for almost a year, according to the Department of the Environment.
The Irish Timeshas learned that the target date for another of Mr Gormley's policy initiatives, the Climate Change Adaptation Strategy, has been brought forward and is now expected to be unveiled in early 2010, almost a year ahead of schedule.
The strategy will set out responses to the type of weather patterns that will become more frequent as a result of climate change, including flash flooding and coastal erosion.
But as the country was hit by another belt of torrential rain this weekend, the Opposition claimed that the Government's response to the flooding was piecemeal and lacked co-ordination.
Labour's environment spokeswoman Joanna Tuffy also criticised what she said was the lack of priority given to the problem by the Government.
"The overall allocation for capital spending on flood prevention is €382 million between 2007 and 2013 under the National Development Plan. But the level of spending to date has been very low, only €23 million last year and €14 million in 2006," she said.
"Flood prevention is becoming a major issue but the Government is going at a snail's pace. It will take years to finish flood works."
Fine Gael's rural and community spokesman Michael Ring criticised what he said were inadequate planning laws that had allowed roads and housing estates to become submerged with water.
"The local authorities have responded very well to the emergencies caused. But the real scandal is that there are unfinished housing estates that have become flooded. Developers have made a fortune yet we have planning laws that have no real powers of enforcement," said Mr Ring.
An Office of Public Works (OPW) spokesman said yesterday that major remedial works have been completed in Kilkenny and are under way in Clonmel, Co Tipperary, Ennis, Co Clare and Mallow, Co Cork. He said a similar scheme would soon start in Fermoy, Co Cork, which was affected by flooding this summer.
The Department of the Environment and the OPW have been working on the new planning guidelines on flooding for the past year.
The department has also issued guidelines to local authorities obliging them to include climate change considerations when drafting county development plans.
