Immediate Action Needed On Flooding

Over the last few weeks once again the problem of flooding has become a major issue in this region. The heavy rain has seen serious flooding return and the failure of the authorities to properly clean our rivers is one of the reasons for this situation. The reasons for this failure are partly bad EU law and fundamental environmentalism which prevents rivers being cleaned up and this serious issue must be addressed immediately. In recent years many farmers in the area have been seriously affected and villages like Athleague, Four Roads, Ballygar and others have been under threat and in more than one case have actually been flooded.. The agencies who manage water levels on the Shannon must also be called to account because in some places the river is restricted to only 15 feet wide. It is past time that the Minister and the authorities act on this matter without any further delay . I am today writing to the OPW, and to Galway and Roscommon County Councils to ask them to outline their plans to clean our major rivers because the build up of silt is now a major contributory factor in this serious flooding in counties Longford, Leitrim, Roscommon, Galway Westmeath and Offaly