Local Sinn Féin spokesperson for Agriculture, Deputy Claire Kerrane, has called on the Government to allow her party’s legislation to establish one authority to manage the River Shannon to be progressed.
The legislation introduced by Deputies Kerrane, Kenny and Clarke was debated in the Dáil in November 2020 but blocked by Government.
“In recent times, the Agriculture Committee heard from farmers, part of the Save Our Shannon Organisation, whom I had arranged come before the committee to outline the reality of the summer flooding in the Shannon Callows.
“These farmers are experiencing the longest summer flood ever with thousands of hectares of land under water preventing farmers from grazing land and saving hay and silage.
“While, Minister McConalogue has made a funding announcement, the wider issue here is the constant flooding and the threat this poses to farming in the Shannon Callows. This funding is welcome however, I have asked the Minister how he came up with a maximum limit of 15 hectares for the Flood Scheme. We also need to ensure farmers flooded by the River Suck and tributaries of the Shannon can access this financial help.
“The flooding of the River Shannon is a vicious circle, flooding happens, it’s talked about, the water disappears, the discussion ends and then the flooding occurs again. This cannot be allowed to continue. The bigger picture here which will free farmers from this level of flooding and also allow them the freedom to farm and continue to the next generation is a single agency to manage and take responsibility for the river. This is long overdue.
“After the 2020 general election, we prioritised drafting legislation to establish a single authority to manage the River Shannon, this legislation was introduced in October 2020 and debated in the Dáil in November 2020. The Minister with responsibility for the OPW, Deputy Patrick O’Donovan, stated that he needed nine months to prepare his own Government legislation to do the same thing - that was three years ago.
“The latest update I have from Minister O’Donovan is that the OPW are finalising legislative options to establish such an authority. This is ridiculous after three years. The legislation is sitting there and it is needed. Government should allow our legislation progress to pre-legislative scrutiny, allow stakeholders, including the Save Our Shannon Organisation in to comment on it and all work together to get this legislation made law and an Authority established. There is no excuse for delaying this,” Deputy Kerrane asserted.
