Agenda and minutes

The Minutes of Meeting of Environment, Climate Action and Agriculture Strategic Policy Committee held on 22^nd September, 2021 were approved on the proposal of Councillor Sean McGowan and seconded by Councillor Paddy Farrell.

There were no matters arising from the Minutes.

Mr. Vincent Dwyer, Head of Finance, Finance, Water, Environment, Climate Action and Emergency Services gave an overview on Climate Action.  The Members were informed that the Climate Action Guidelines were published yesterday.  The preparation of the Climate Action Plan will commence in mid  2022 and will take approximately 12 months to complete.

Mr. Francis Gaffney, A/Senior Engineer informed the Members that the SEAI is providing funding for the retrofitting of Council owned properties.

Mr. Francis Gaffney, A/Senior Engineer gave an update to the Members on Irish Water.  He stated that discussions are still taking place regarding the transfer of staff to a Single Utility Service.

Mr. Gaffney informed the Members that the annual Service Plan has been finalised for next year and that there has been no issues with the performance of our plants but that some are in need of an upgrade.

A discussion followed regarding the upgrade of various schemes in the county and queries raised were addressed by Ms Marie Mulligan, Senior Executive Engineer and Mr. Francis Gaffney, A/Senior Engineer.

Mr. Vincent Dwyer, Head of Finance, Finance, Water, Environment, Climate Action and Emergency Services informed the Members that the Draft Plan has been published and is at the consultation phase at present.  Mr. Dwyer welcomed Jimmy McVeigh, Community Officer for the Border Region to the meeting.

The Members received a presentation from Ms. Marie Mulligan, Senior Executive Engineer, on the Draft River Basin Management Plan 2022 – 2027

 Discussions followed regarding various aspects of the Plan and queries raised were addressed by Ms. Marie Mulligan, Mr. Francis Gaffney and Mr. McVeigh.

No items raised.

Mr. Vincent Dwyer, Head of Finance, Finance, Water, Environment, Climate Action and Emergency Services informed the Members that an audit took place on the Civic Amenity Sites nationally.  Mr. Dwyer stated that the Civic Amenity Sites are operating at a substantial loss and recommendations have been made to ease the financial burden.  The report will be available for the next SPC meeting.