Minister of State O’Donovan announces €955,000 for Advance Works at Clieveragh, Listowel

Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works, Patrick O’Donovan, has today announced funding of almost €1 million to Kerry County Council for flooding works in the town of Listowel.

The funding of €955,000 will be used for flood defences to protect some 50 properties at risk from flooding at Clieveragh in Listowel. The Clieveragh area has experienced significant flooding in 2009, 2012, 2014 and 2015 and again in 2023.

Minister O’Donovan said:

“Recently, I met with concerned community and business representatives from Listowel, who have experienced flooding in recent years. Only this summer, after a significant heavy rainfall event, the streams in Clieveragh could not take the volumes of water.

“People cannot be asked to live with the risk and the fear of flooding where an easy solution can be identified and easily delivered. While there is a planned flood relief scheme for Listowel, a simple solution can be easily delivered in advance of the main scheme to manage the flood risk at the boundary of the town.”

Today’s funding will enable works to include:

over ground storm water attenuation pond (purpose built water storage facility) at Curraghatoosane
new open channel to convey the outflow from the pond to the Clieveragh watercourse to the south
box culvert under the R552

Minister O’Donovan continued:

“Kerry County Council and the OPW have already discussed the most efficient ways to carry out these works, and an announcement on this will be made shortly.”

Today’s allocation brings funding to manage flooding at Clieveragh to €1.1 million after previous amounts of €176,000 in 2016-17 were allocated to Kerry County Council to explore and design a flood relief solution for the area.

Minister O’Donovan concluded:

“Today’s funding is just the start of a bigger flood relief scheme for Listowel, and comes from the €1.3 billion allocated for flood relief measures under the National Development Plan, (NDP). Since 2018 the government has trebled the number of flood relief schemes at design and construction to some 100 schemes nationally.”

For further information or to request an interview with a spokesperson, please contact the Press Office at pressoffice@opw.ie

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