We have to be ruthless on flood planning

THERE is very little we can do about the weather – but a very great deal we can do to ensure that, in future, the risk of flood damage to property is minimised.

As we reveal today, a site in Athlone – known to be on a flood plain – got planning permission from the local council in 2007 for 96 apartments, a leisure centre, a crèche and 46 houses, despite warnings and objections from those living nearby, who likely had greater knowledge of the River Shannon than the council.

The decision was appealed to An Bord Pleanála, which upheld the development except for the 46 houses, which it feared might indeed see flooding in the future.

Today, as our picture shows, the entire site is under water. It vividly illustrates the planning madness the country tolerated during the bubble and, while it may be fortuitous that this development did not proceed, hundreds of other houses were built in entirely unsuitable locations.

On Thursday, while touring the worstaffected areas, the Taoiseach suggested that people living in areas likely to see ever more frequent repeats of flooding might have to be relocated to higher ground. This situation never should have arisen.

As the construction industry once again gains traction, we must head off problems before they arise. This week has shown that the worst-case scenario the council considered at the time already has been exceeded. Using computer modelling to assess the future effect of even greater floods, we must be absolutely ruthless in refusing planning permission for any development with even the tiniest possibility of ending up submerged.