Danny Healy-Rae demands dredging and urgent flood action
Danny Healy-Rae addressed a motion on flooding in the Shannon catchment, thanked the Sinn Fein party for bringing it forward, and called for immediate action rather than further studies. He urged dredging and the removal of silt and blockages, criticised costly hold-the-water schemes, and appealed to the minister to deploy machinery and take levels to protect homes, farms and businesses.
Motion and acknowledgement
Danny Healy-Rae opened by thanking the Sinn Fein party for bringing the motion and expressed commiseration with people along the Shannon catchment who have endured flooding and ruined homes.
Call for dredging and clearance
He said enough studies have been done and action is required now. He argued there is no excuse for not removing silt and blockages, noting the river Shannon has not been properly dredged since the 1880s and urging that pinch points be cleaned so water can flow.
Local example of successful clearance
He cited a Kerry example where branches and trees were cleared after funding of €160,000 was provided, work that took about three weeks and stopped repeated flooding of roads and houses in that area.
Criticism of expensive containment proposals
He criticised proposals to spend €5–6 million to enclose a 12-acre field and build walls to hold back water, calling such schemes wasteful and arguing maintenance and clearance are the better approach.
Appeal to the minister and concern for residents
He pressed the minister to get machines on site, take levels and ensure places will not continue to be flooded, warning that inaction may lead to legal claims and insisting the needs of flooded households, farms and businesses must take priority over environmental objections.
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I'm glad to get the opportunity to talk on this very important motion here tonight and I want to thank the Sinn Fein party for bringing this forward I commiserate with the people all along the Shannon catchment and we have seen in the television what they suffer and what they have endured and continue to endure and we see homes flooded and there's nothing more horrible than a house when it is flooded and when the water comes up the toilet and the sewer comes up and all that and the house is ruined it's never the same again. It's horrible when you see a slatted tank full of water and cows and cattle inside and maybe small cabines inside and paddling around in water that's terrible minister and it's horrible and it shouldn't people shouldn't have to endure that. I agree that there's enough studies and the time for studying is over and action needs to be had and there was never more excavators there was never more technical equipment for taking levels and all that we didn't that we didn't have in the past but it's sad to think and I have been told that the river Shannon hasn't been dredged since the English did it back in the 1880s properly dredged. So there is no excuse and there should be no prohibition in taking silt or blockages out of the river minister because I can give you one example in Kerry for years for the last up until 2018 and maybe going back almost 10 years before that the river flesh was being flooded, 14 holes were being flooded, constantly. Dean 22 was being flooded and thankfully the Boxer Moorn came down and stood on Crail Bridge, I thank him for coming down and he just gave us 160,000 euros to clear the branches that were blocking the river and we were flooded out of it in the end of 2015 and early 16 and since the work was done and it only took three weeks of cutting branches and it only took three weeks of cutting branches and trees. The road hasn't been flooded, the houses haven't been flooded and it's a delight to pass up and down on and we have had serious floods even last week again but it's a small bit of work and the work can be done minister and surely, surely it is more important to please and appease the people whose homes are being flooded, whose lands are being flooded, whose businesses are being flooded than to be worried about environmentalists that don't have to endure it. That's the sad fact of the thing and minister you might be afraid of them but what would the story be like if these people that their homes and their businesses and their farms are being flooded took a court case against us for not doing anything to help them. I think that's what we should be worried about. I think that's what we should be worried about because it's not fair what's happening and the people who will have to be, there are only good living people that do nothing wrong. They have to be listened to and you know this talk about holding back water. Sea farms are trying to do a lot of that around the country. I don't support that. There's a river leaving Castle Island and all that needs to be done it was it was cleaned out in the late 50s and early 60s and the place was fine for years. Now there's a proposal to spend five or six million to build it to enclose a 12 acre field and build a wall around it and hold back the water. Minister that's rubbish and that's a waste of good money and we have the TIA proposing now to raise the road in Glen Flesk that hasn't been flooded since the work was done. I said to you minister all that needs to be done is to maintain and ensure that the river is kept free and let the water flow because if you have a glass of water there and you have to fill it with sugar what's going to happen? The water is going to come out over the top of it and that's what says all you need to do is clean out the pinch points, clean out the blockages and relieve the people and give the people a chance to carry on because when it wasn't flooding in the past why should it be flooding now? I'm very grateful for to get this opportunity and I support the people of the Shannon and the Shannon catchment they need attention and we should and we all support them but we're depending on you now minister to get working and to get machines out there and get levels taken and ensure that places are not going to continue to be flooded. Thank you very much.
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