A number of local farmers on the Laois-Kildare border met with Laois County Council engineers last week to discuss the ongoing flooding issues effecting their land.
Philip McVeigh, a senior engineer in Laois County Council, and John Ormonde, the engineer for the Portarlington-Graiguecullen district, met local county councillor Tom Mulhall and a delegation of local farmers from the Jamestown-Courtwood-Vicarstown area in the old Community Hall in Vicarstown.
The farmers were represented by Peter Luttrell, Paul O’Connell, John Boland, Henry McLoughlin and Bill Carroll and impressed upon the council the importance of dredging the river to avoid the regular problem they have experienced of their land flooding during the winter months.
“The farmers got away lightly last winter with regards the weather,” said Cllr Mulhall when introducing the meeting, “but in previous years hundreds of acres of crops were under water. These farmers are representing a larger group of people who are effected but the construction of the motorway and houses in Portarlington has led to extra water hitting the river and that has created a problem.”
John Ormonde explained that Kildare County Council – who are responsible for the land on their side of the river – have been engaged with and are working on clearing the silt as well. However, he said that the two Councils can’t work directly opposite each other as they are required to provide shelter for fish and flies.
He added that the councils have committed to sourcing a digger with a 25-metre reach in order to get to the middle of the river and hope to do a 3-4km stretch next year. He also said that they will need co-operation from land owners but are working to a five-year plan.
“Silt has to be removed from the centre of the river,” argued Paul O’Connell. “Islands are developing in the middle of the river big enough to build a house on.”
When it was pointed out by John Ormonde that the council had run into difficulties because they had come across otter holes and that cray fish were a potential problem too, Peter Luttrell, a former Laois IFA chairman, said, “farmers are an endangered species too”.
It was agreed that the work carried out already has made an improvement – but there is still a lot needed to be done.
Paul O’Connell welcomed the progress made, including the involvement of Kildare County Council and the sourcing of an appropriate machine but he said funding should be ringfenced for the project.
“We’re still quite fearful that the budget can be swallowed up elsewhere. We would like for the money to be ring-fenced for the dredging of the River Barrow.”
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