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Further Information:
For more flooding information click here: www.flooding.ie Ministers Gormley and Mansergh Publish Statutory Planning System and Flood Risk Management GuidelinesMr. John Gormley, T.D., Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, and Dr. Martin Mansergh, T.D., Minister of State at the Department of Finance with responsibility for the OPW, today (30 November 2009) jointly published statutory planning guidelines on The Planning System and Flood Risk Management, which are aimed at ensuring a more consistent, rigorous and systematic approach to the avoidance and minimisation of potential future flood risk and to fully incorporate flood risk assessment and management into the planning system. These guidelines were issued as a consultation draft for public consultation in the latter part of last year, and both Ministers expressed their thanks to the numerous public and private bodies who made valuable submissions and worthwhile contributions to the drafting process. The new guidelines which have been prepared in response to the recommendations of the National Flood Policy Review Group are focused on providing guidance on the comprehensive consideration of flood risk, both in preparing future regional plans, development plans and local area plans, and in determining applications for planning permission in line with the principles of proper planning and sustainable development. They also address environmental considerations including the need to manage the potential impacts of climate change. Publishing the finalised Guidelines, the Minister Gormley was pleased to note that the Guidelines have been widely welcomed by regional and planning authorities and by professional bodies and the general public during the consultation process, *The Guidelines provide for best practice and a sound basis on which planners, developers and their agents, and individuals can ensure flood risk is taken fully into account throughout the planning process and properly managed thereafter, to ensure into the future that our built environment takes proper account of the potentially devastating risk posed by flooding to people,property and the environment*, the Minister outlined. The new Guidelines are aimed at ensuring that development vulnerable to flooding will only be permitted by planning authorities in areas at high or even moderate risk of flooding in exceptional circumstances where decisions are based on clear and transparent criteria set out in the Guidelines. The Guidelines require the planning system at national,regional and local levels to: * Avoid development in areas at risk of flooding, particularly in floodplains, unless there are demonstrable, wider sustainability grounds that justify appropriate development and where the flood risk can be reduced or managed to an acceptable level without increasing flood risk elsewhere; * Adopt a sequential approach to flood risk management when assessing the location for new development based on avoidance, reduction and mitigation of flood risk; and * Incorporate flood risk assessment into the process of making decisions on planning applications and planning appeals. The Guidelines are a comprehensive statement of good planning practice and also act as a key step towards adapting to the inevitable impacts of climate change. While our understanding of these impacts is still at an early stage and significant uncertainties remain to be resolved, research and indeed anectodotal experiences with exteme weather events clearly demonstrate that Ireland's climate is already being affected by the impacts of climate change and these will increase in the coming decades and are likely to be felt in every sector of the economy. Increased frequency and magnitude of flooding due to heavier rainfall, sea level rises and storm surges are among the most serious threats for Ireland. Addressing flood risk identification, assessment and management through the planning system in these guidelines is a key response.
Minister Mansergh welcomed the Guidelines as another significant step
in the implementation of the national flood policy, *The OPW and its
partners have a number of important and substantial work programmes in
place that are reducing the flood risk that people currently experience
as well as making advance provision for better protection from the
anticipated effects of climate change. We must above all ensure that we
do all that we can to avoid creating new risks, and the Guidelines will
facilitate the planning authorities in making sure that new development
is as safe from flooding as it can be.*
The new Guidelines are being issued to planning authorities and An Bord
Pleanála under Section 28 of the 2000 Planning and Development Act,
which requires them to have proper regard to the principles and
procedures of these guidelines in carrying out their functions.
Minister Gormley concluded by saying *We have to adapt to the
realities of climate change impacts; we must protect ourselves by
adapting the way we do business; we must ensure planning authorities,
developers and their agents, individuals seeking planning permission,
and major infrastructural providers are all properly equipped with the
principles and practical methodologies as set out in these new
guidelines. This will ensure we begin proofing ourselves now from
future exposure to the impacts of flooding by fully integrating the
consideration of flood risk into the planning process.*
The guidelines are available to view and download from the
Department*s website: www.environ.ie.
ENDS (30/11/09) Background Notes for Editors These guidelines introduce comprehensive mechanisms for the incorporation of flood risk identification, assessment and management into the planning process. Implementation of the guidelines will be achieved through actions at the national, regional, local authority and site-specific levels. At the national level: - The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has introduced these guidelines as a comprehensive statement of good planning practice and as a key step towards a National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy. The Minister will further monitor the development plans of local authorities to ensure that they are prepared in a manner that is consistent with the guidelines. - The Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government will ensure that all relevant Department publications and regulations encourage and promote the use of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS). - The Office of Public Works, as the lead agency for flood risk management in Ireland will continue its work in developing indicative flood maps and catchment-based Flood Risk Management Plans (FRMPS) in partnership with local authorities, the Environmental Protection Agency and other relevant departments and bodies in accordance with national flood policy and the EU Floods Directive. - DEHLG and OPW will work with regional and local authorities in assisting with technical aspects of the implementation of these guidelines on an ongoing basis, learning from experience within Ireland and internationally. At the regional level: - Regional Authorities will be required to prepare a strategically focused flood risk appraisal at the regional level as an integral input to the preparation of Regional Planning Guidelines (RPG*s) which act as a framework for ongoing co-ordination of the development plans of local authorities in their areas. The preparation of this element of the RPG*s will be co-ordinated with the preparation of River Basin Management Plans (RBMP*s) under the EU Water Framework Directive and future work required to prepare Flood Risk Management Plans under the EU Floods Directive by the OPW. At City and County level: - Planning authorities will introduce flood risk assessment as an integral and leading element of their development planning functions under the Planning Code and at the earliest practicable opportunity in line with the requirements of these guidelines. - The new flood risk assessment system will be aligned with the existing Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) process introducing processes for identifying flood risk and determining what flood risk assessment is required and carrying out such assessments similar to the overall system for screening and scoping under SEA provision. - City and county development plans will establish the flood risk assessment requirements context for their functional areas including other planning authorities such as Town Councils and any Local Area Plans (LAP) which may be supplemented by more detailed site-specific flood risk assessment required to comply with these guidelines. - Planning authorities will assess planning applications for development in accordance with the provisions of these guidelines following the guidance of their own or any OPW strategic flood risk assessment and the application of the sequential approach and, if necessary, the justification test required by these guidelines. - Planning authorities will ensure that development is not be permitted in areas of flood risk, particularly floodplains, except where there are no suitable alternative sites available in areas at lower risk that are consistent with the objectives of proper planning and sustainable development. Where such development has to take place, in the case of urban regeneration for example, the type of development has to be carefully considered and the risks should be mitigated and managed through location, layout and design of the development to reduce flood risk to an acceptable level. - Planning authorities will ensure that only developments consistent with the overall policy and technical approaches of these guidelines will be approved and permission will be refused where flood issues have not been, or cannot be, addressed successfully and where the presence of unacceptable residual flood risks to the development, its occupants or users and adjoining property remains. Under the Planning and Development Act 2000, planning permission refused for the reason that the proposed development is in an area which is at risk of flooding excludes compensation. In the case of applications for planning permission and development consents to planning authorities and An Bord Pleanála, applicants and their agents are required to: - Carefully examine their development proposals to ensure consistency with the requirements of these guidelines including carefully researching whether there have been instances of flooding or there is the potential for flooding, on specific sites and declaring any known flood history in the planning application form as required under the Planning and Development Regulations 2006. - Engage with planning authorities at an early stage, utilising the arrangements for pre-planning application consultation with regard to any flood risk assessment issues that may arise. - Carry out a site-specific flood risk assessment, as appropriate, and comply with the terms and conditions of any grant of planning permission with regard to the minimisation of flood risk. |
