Flood Scheme delayed by up to two months
MAIN construction work on the Enniscorthy Flood Defence scheme could be delayed until summer 2017 as site investigation works are taking longer than originally anticipated.
The work, which was due to commence in spring of next year, has now been pushed back by approximately two months according to Project Resident Engineer Larry McHale. Mr McHale said that the site investigation works are taking longer than originally expected, meaning that other work is unable to progress.
‘We were looking at diverting a sewer down the promenade but I am not comfortable doing that until we have had a more detailed site investigation,’ he said, explaining that the diversion of the sewer is now being put on hold until spring having originally been scheduled to take place this year.
Mr McHale went on to say that they do not want to move the pipe until they have identified all of the services that will need to be moved. He said that these will not all be identified until the site investigation work is complete.
‘ The pipe is only one services. With the full investigation works done, we will then be able to look at moving all of the services at the one time. This would minimise any type of disruption to the town instead of moving different services at different times,’ he said.
Mr McHale added that they didn’t want to disrupt any of Enniscorthy’s festivals by carrying out the work during the summer.
Though he said he would like the project to be moving a bit faster, Mr McHale said that work couldn’t have moved more quickly than it has been.
‘We are doing the best we can at the moment,’ he said.
‘ The nature of this work is that it can take quite some time. We had a very ambitious plan.’
Site investigation works commenced on site in June and will continue in the town centre, along the river bed and banks and in the adjacent roads and footpaths for the coming weeks. The information from the investigation works is needed to complete the detailed design of the flood defences, the new road bridge and the new pedestrian bridge. Once it is approved for detailed design stage and put on public display, it will go to the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform for confirmation, a process which takes from one to three months.