Technology not the answer to ring buoy inspections
Fine Gael councillor John Hegarty has asked whether Wexford County Council couldn’t come up with a less time-consuming method of carrying out inspections on 16,000 ring buoys around the county.
The inspections are carried out manually by rapid response crews in the environment department and Cllr. Hegarty wondered if it was the best use of manpower and whether there was a technology solution available.
Environment officer Hugh Maguire said the ring buoy is a very important piece of equipment if someone gets into trouble and it is necessary to do regular checks on them.
The Council examined the possibility of a digital alarm system option but found that it’s not very satisfactory, as it doesn’t provide information on the nature of a particular problem. Mr. Maguire said the crews had refined the inspection routine and were very efficient at it. ‘A year or two ago, we looked at the option of a digital solution but the technology is not as good as you think it might be.’