OPW not engaging with Council on climate issues, says Tormey

Fine Gael Councillor Aoibhinn Tormey said that the Office of Public Works do not engage with Fingal County Council on climate issues.

Tormey, who represents the Howth-Malahide area, says that the Office of Public Works are not acting quickly enough to mitigate projected damage from climate change and are seriously lacking in engagement with Fingal County Council on the issue.

“I represent an area which, if the projections are correct and the sea level rises like they are projected to, will be absolutely devastated and wiped out in 50 years.”

She said that her submission to the Climate Action Plan called for greater flood protection and planning, and asked if the OPW could expedite their typically sluggish approval process as the matter is one of great urgency.

“I’ve been on Fingal County Council for nearly 5 years and we’ve had no significant engagement with the OPW during that time,” she said.

“Given how serious this issue is we need to have a much better engagement with them on this issue; it needs to happen, it’s just too serious an issue.”

Balbriggan Councillor and fellow Fine Gael member Tom O’Lear  backed Tormey’s motion, saying that a “mystery list” of proposed works is sitting with the OPW, but “no one knows what’s going on.”

“People are afraid every time there is heavy rain that they will be flooded and we don’t know if the plan is going to be carried out.”

O’Leary said that the OPW should be called before Fingal County Council each year for a meeting, similar to Irish Water and other large State organisations.

Independent Councillor Jimmy Guerin recalls that work was carried out following flooding in the area a decade ago, saying that the Council were involved with work at the time.

“Whilst there is an ongoing danger, there has been a period of ongoing work in respect of that in Fingal,” he said.

Social Democrats Councillor Paul Mulville said, “from Sutton to Portmarnock to Rush there are serious problems with flooding; the proposal here for the OPW and the Councillors to work together is something we’re keen to build on.”

Mulville said the proposed National Coastal Change Management Strategy lacks specifics, and serves more as future planning as opposed to issuing clear and concise plans to deal with coastal flooding.

David Storey, environment manager with Fingal County Council, said he was happy to write to the OPW and invite them in for a formal meeting.

“There are four flooding schemes under consideration at the moment in Fingal; one for Portmarnock, one for Malahide, one for Rush and for Skerries” and said they are “under assessment” with the OPW.

“This does not impact on the Climate Action Plan,” he stated, which he said was a separate issue.

The Climate Action Plan was open to members of the public last winter, with the draft plan looking to guide and influence Fingal County Council on how they will deal with climate issues from 2024 to 2029.