Latest news with #RoryO'Mahony
Irish Independent
05-06-2025
- Climate
- Irish Independent
Fears Christmas Day floods will be repeated as Wexford dunes disappear – ‘It'll be too late if the tide ever gets through'
Fears that the Christmas Day floods which decimated south Wexford may become a regular occurrence have been aired at the monthly meeting of the Rosslare Municipal District (RMD). With the sun shining and all winter storms momentarily forgotten, Councillor Jim Codd sounded an alarm bell for those living in the Kilmore Quay area. 'We'll have to take a look at the Burrow in Kilmore because the locals are telling me there's large gaps developing in it,' he said. 'We had thousands of acres flooded down there in 2021. I know we're so tied up with red tape on issues like this, but it'll be too late to discuss it if the tide ever goes through the Burrow, and this is a very real danger according to those with knowledge of the area. "The Burrow has kept back the sea for a very long time and any holes in it are dangerous.' Last year environmental engineer Rory O'Mahony was among those who met with the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) to discuss a potential solution to the problems at the Burrow, and he said a more natural approach was required to combat the tides. 'The view the NPWS took back then was that natural rehabilitation would solve the problem,' he said. 'So, I've advised the local group to come up with a proposal to bring to the NPWS.' However, Cllr Codd was of the view that drastic measures were required and that time was of the essence. 'The farmers have agreed to use their own diggers down there to fill the gaps,' he said. 'The plan is not to use diggers," replied Mr O'Mahony. 'But instead use a low impact method to trap the sand and allow the marram grass to regenerate, that kind of approach might get a project across the line. If the group down there get an expert on dune restoration and put a decent proposal together for the NPWS it could work.'
Irish Independent
04-06-2025
- General
- Irish Independent
IPAS speculation continues in Wexford as council says it can't assess wastewater capacity of potential sites
Wexford People With speculation continuing to mount that at least one new International Protection Accommodation Scheme (IPAS) centre is to be opened in the Wexford village of Killnick, the local council has said it can't assess the environmental impact of potentially 100 residents until they actually move in. Applications to turn both The Danby Lodge and The Moyglare Lodge into IPAS centres have already been submitted and there remains a degree of uncertainty regarding the purpose of ongoing works at Cooper's Inn. While the future use of Cooper's has yet to be confirmed, Councillor Frank Staples has asked that an environmental report be carried out at the premises to assess its wastewater capacity. However, at the May meeting of the Rosslare Municipal District (RMD) he was informed that such an assessment would be pointless until the building is back in use. 'Our inspector is going to have a look at it but because there's no actual incident (to investigate) I'm not sure if she's going to have very much to do,' said environmental engineer Rory O'Mahony. 'The inspector has said that because there isn't a failure issue there and because the premises isn't occupied, there's not an incident she can deal with.' Cllr Staples then confirmed that a planning application would be forthcoming from Cooper's Inn, to which Mr O'Mahony replied, 'It will have to go through the planning process first then.'
