The Galway City Council must act immediately to protect houses and buildings along the Claddagh, Salthill and other areas prone to flooding across the city from an inevitable rise in sea levels.
This is the view of Fianna Fail Galway City West candidate Peter Keane, who has warned that Galway must plan now to avert the impact of rising sea levels.
Mr Keane’s comments come following concerns raised by Dr Kieran Hickey, climatologist and lecturer in physical geography at NUI, Galway.
“Dr Hickey has confirmed there is a very real threat to Galway and other coastal towns as a result of rising sea levels,” said Mr Keane. “Combined with our history of high tides and storm swells, Galway will see a marked increase in the severity and regularity of flooding. It is anticipated that ocean levels could rise by one metre between now and the year 2100.”
Mr Keane is calling for a co-ordinated effort from the Galway city and county council and the Government, to plan for the future.
