By Conor O’Carroll.
Roscommon County Council has taken aim at an environmental advocacy group over its legal challenge to flood relief works at Lough Funshinagh.
In a press statement released last week, the Council said that water levels at the South Roscommon lake were “extremely high for this time of year”, following considerable rainfall in the area in recent weeks.
The statement reiterated a commitment by the Council to “providing whatever flood protection measures can be provided”, but also targeted environmental group Friends of the Irish Environment (FIE) over its High Court action which prevented an emergency flood relief scheme from being implemented.
“Due to the High Court challenge taken by Friends of the Irish Environment against Roscommon County Council, flood relief works that would have protected homes, property and public infrastructure in the general vicinity of the lake cannot be completed and no new works can be undertaken”, the Council said.
FIE director Tony Lowes said that their organisation “stood in solidarity with communities in areas such as Middleton and Lough Funshinagh who are impacted by climate change”
Under the proposals, the Council had sought to construct a 3km pipeline to take water from Lough Funshinagh to an area near Lough Ree, the second largest lake on the River Shannon.
However, Lough Funshinagh is a Special Area of Conservation, granting it additional legal protections under EU law.
In 2022, FIE secured a High Court order after it brought a judicial review against the Council, arguing it had breached European environmental laws.
The Court ordered Roscommon County Council to quash their decision to approve the scheme meaning they are not able to use the sections of the pipeline already constructed without approval from the High Court.
Because of the court order, the Council’s press release continues, measures aimed at combatting the rising waters are “limited to localised flood defences and pumping in the immediate vicinity of the affected properties”.
Locals remain concerned with the rising water levels and unresolved flood relief. Speaking to the Roscommon Herald, Matthew Beattie of the Lough Funshinagh Flood Crisis Committee said: “What was once a beautiful village is now totally destroyed and everyone around is living in constant fear from October to April each year, not knowing what the winter will bring”.
Responding to the statement from Roscommon County Council, FIE director Tony Lowes said that their organisation “stood in solidarity with communities in areas such as Middleton and Lough Funshinagh who are impacted by climate change”.
“We appreciate the anguish and anxiety that people are experiencing in the local area”, he continued but argued that FIE should not be blamed for challenging the Council’s plan and upholding the law.
A statement released by FIE further argued that Roscommon County Council were suggesting that “the organisation which challenged it in Court is somehow responsible for the predicament of the local community”.
In 2022, FIE secured a High Court order after it brought a judicial review against the Council, arguing it had breached European environmental laws
“It is unacceptable for a public authority”, the FIE statement continued, “to seek to blame our organization for upholding the law of the land. If that is what is actually being suggested by the Council, then it is an extraordinary position for a public authority to hold”.
Roscommon County Council have said that work on a long-term solution for Lough Funshinagh is underway.
