Cllr Gary Doherty has welcomed reports that consideration is being given by the government to establish a taskforce responsible for co-ordinating flood protection plans along the River Shannon.
However he has insisted that other regions affected by recent floods must not be forgotten – including Donegal.
Cllr Doherty, who was speaking amid reports that the government are now considering the establishment of such an agency for the Shannon catchment area, says that establishing a similar agency for Donegal, which is in the North Western – Neagh Bann catchment area for flood mapping, must also be examined.
He said “News that the government are now considering the establishment of a multi-agency taskforce to co-ordinate and implement flood defence plans for the Shannon region, while long overdue, is a welcome development.
“However, it is now crucial that the government commit to the creation of similar task forces for the other regions across the island which too have fallen victim to flood waters in recent weeks – Donegal included.
“Immediately following flooding last month in both the Finn Valley and across the border in parts of Tyrone, I and my colleagues in Sinn Féin called for the establishment of an inter-agency body to deal with flooding and for a cross border approach to be employed to tackle the issue.
“Considering our geographic location, the benefits of a joined up consolidated approach to flood planning and mitigation is obvious and this is exactly why Sinn Féin at the time sought a meeting with Minister Simon Harris and Minister Michelle O’Neill of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in the north to examine how their respective Departments could work together to ensure preventive measures are put in place.
“Minister O’Neill agreed that she would be discussing this proposal with her officials and that she would be willing to follow this up with a more substantive meeting to discuss flood prevention strategies with her Ministerial counterpart in the Office of Public Works, Simon Harris.
“The fact is that flood victims are not just limited to the Shannon basin, and recent flooding throughout the Finn Valley in particular has devastated many home owners and businesses many of who are still counting the cost of these floods and are living in fear of the next bout of heavy rain.
“In order to raise this proposal with the Minister, my party colleague Deputy Pearse Doherty will be highlighting this issue in the Dáil once it resumes in the coming days.”
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