Flood relief works to protect 30 Limerick homes to cost €14 million
The Office of Public Works (OPW) has deemed the proposed scheme to be cost-benefit inefficient.
FLOOD relief works to protect around 30 homes and businesses in a County Limerick village will cost at least €14 million, it has been revealed.
There have been calls for measures to be taken in Athea for more than a decade, following a major flood event in 2015.
Consultants were appointed Limerick City and County Council in 2019 and proposals for the scheme, which were subsequently forwarded to the Office of Public Works for consideration.
At the September meeting of Newcastle West Municipal District, councillors were told the OPW has undertaken an analysis of the proposed scheme, and calculated that the economic outcome of the scheme would yield a 0.53 Benefit to Cost Return, largely due to the extensive funding required.
According to a letter, which was circulated at the meeting as this does not meet the OPW’s criteria funding has not been approved.
Reacting to the OPW’s analysis, Cllr John Sheahan commented: “The people of Athea are second class citizens.”
In the letter, Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran TD, Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure, explained that flood relief plans must meet a variety of criteria before receiving funding.
“Investing some €14m for the delivery of this preferred scheme option, has to ensure that it is a viable scheme, technically, environmentally and economically.
“The Office of Public Works has recently discussed its assessment with the Council. The Council and the OPW are jointly working on finalising this review to identify a viable flood relief scheme and measures for Athea to be funded from the €1.3bn for flood relief measures under the National Development Plan.”
Limerick City and County Council has led the development of the scheme over a number of years, appointing consultant engineers and holding multiple public consultation days.
Athea is located in the upper reaches of the River Galey, a tributary of the River Feale. The River Galey, has seen a number of flooding events over the past two decades.
In 2008, the village was hit with a “once-in-650-years” downpour, causing flooding that dealt millions of euro worth of damage to homes and businesses.