OPW: Office of Public Works
Oifig na nOibreacha Poiblí
Policy and Objectives
Over the last 150 years or more, and in accordance with economic and social conditions prevalent at the time, a range of policies and approaches have been taken to manage flood risk in Ireland. Please refer to History of Flood Management for more information on past policies.
In 2003 an Inter-Departmental Policy Review Group, led by the OPW, undertook a wide-ranging review of the national flood risk management policy, focusing on clarifying roles and responsibilities and identifying an appropriate national policy for to ensure effective flood risk management well into the 21st Century.
In September 2004, the Government approved the Report of the Flood Policy Review Group (Link to pdf), and adopted the recommendations made therein. The current national policy may defined as being:
'to minimise the national level of flood risk to people, businesses, infrastructure and the environment, through the identification and management of existing, and particularly potential future, flood risks in an integrated, proactive and catchment-based manner'.
Other key recommendations of the Report included:
- Appointment of the OPW as lead agency for delivery of flood risk management policy
- Catchment Flood Risk Management Plans should be developed as focal points for flood risk management planning
- Policy and guidelines on the consideration of flood risk in planning and development management guidelines should be developed
- A greater focus should be placed on non-structural flood risk management measures, supported, where necessary, by traditional structural flood relief measures
- A designation process to empower the OPW to undertake maintenance of high-risk channels
- Current legislation should be reviewed to determine changes required in order to implement the new policy-Research should be undertaken in various sectors to develop a strategic information base.
Following adoption of the new policy and the recommendations of the Report, the OPW and its partners have been working to develop and implement work programmes to deliver on the policy.
These work programmes will also need to deliver on the recently adopted Directive on the Assessment and Management of Flood Risks (the 'Floods' Directive).
Click here for more information on the Managing Flood Risk