€5.2m Flood Relief Scheme Completed in Clare

A new €5.2 million flood relief scheme designed to protect homes in Springfield, Co Clare, has been officially completed.

The project, delivered in partnership between the Office of Public Works (OPW) and Clare County Council, will provide protection from significant flooding for 21 homes in the area.

Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW, Kevin “Boxer” Moran, T.D., visited Springfield on Tuesday to mark the scheme’s completion. “This now forms part of a group of 56 completed flood relief schemes that are protecting some 13,600 properties nationwide,” he said. “It is part of €120 million in investment across Clare alone, including schemes completed in Ennis, Sixmilebridge and now Springfield, as well as major projects underway in Shannon Town and Environs, Kilkee, Bunratty and Kilrush.”

The Minister noted that, alongside large-scale projects, the OPW has provided €3.9 million under the Minor Flood Mitigation Works and Coastal Protection Scheme to support 43 smaller initiatives across the county.

Springfield has faced repeated flooding for decades due to its low-lying position on the banks of the River Shannon. The first major flood to draw national attention came in 1995, followed by devastating events in 2009, 2014 and the winter of 2015–16, when families were evacuated by boat and the Army as floodwaters lingered for months. Smaller but damaging floods struck again in 2018 and 2020.

The Springfield scheme was designed by engineering firm Ayesa, with construction carried out directly by the OPW. Works included an 850-metre flood defence embankment across the floodplain at Cappavilla North and Illaunyregan, a pumping station, culverts with sluice gates, land raising at Cottage, and associated drainage, fencing and storage facilities.

The scheme forms part of the Government’s Project Ireland 2040 strategy and is funded through the €1.3 billion allocation for flood relief under the National Development Plan, which aims to future-proof communities against the impacts of climate change.

Completed flood relief schemes in Clare now include the Ennis defences, protecting 1,850 properties, Sixmilebridge protecting 16 properties, and Springfield protecting 21 homes, with a combined project budget of about €64 million. A further €50 million is earmarked for works currently underway in Shannon, Kilkee, Bunratty and Kilrush.