This article is from page 39 of the 2008-10-21 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 39 JPG
A PLAN to manage and protect the quality of water in the Shannon and it’s lakes will have major effects on OCAVo) Co) o) eater LMU DOME Duct KMmIelUKOlUNNC MMH ETc waterways, mid-west representatives have been told.
Work on the plan has been on-go- ing for six years and a draft plan will be ready for December with a six- month public consultation period to follow.
But while initial details of the pro- posal will be available from then, concerns are mounting in the region
over a Separate proposal to drain wa- ter from the Shannon to help meet demand in Dublin.
A meeting of the Mid-West Re- gional Authority last week was told that “major changes” in relation to future development along the shores of the Shannon can be expected.
‘There could be no development in some areas,’ RPS consulting engi- neer, Alan G Barr told the meeting.
He added than an embargo on de- velopment in some areas will have to be addressed in terms of zoning by the Clare County Council and other local authorities involved.
Water purity testing has been car- ried out in the river by the Envi- ronmental Protection Agency since 2006 and this is one of the main parameters being used in formulat- ing the proposals for protecting the Shannon.
The plan is expected to recom- mend having protected areas along the banks of the river and the shores of lakes. Other recommendations are thought to include a ban on forestry, going as far as the removal of exist- ing trees and set-aside of agricultural land. Meanwhile, elected representa- tives in Clare have been expressing
varied views on the proposal to take water from the Shannon and deliver it to Dublin.
Cllr Colm Wiley said at a meeting of the county council that the author- ity could “take any compensation money and use it to drain farm land which is flooded for most of the year in Clare”’.
Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) said that the reality for Dublin is that there are just two options “one is distillation which is too costly and the other is to take water from the Shannon. This will significantly affect the levels of water in the Shannon”.