Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael)
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Question 342: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the arrangements that have been made to have emergency management plans in place for each of the following extreme weather patterns in each of the main cities and in rural areas: extreme cold including frost and ice, heavy falls of snow, flooding in urban and rural areas from rainfall and also from rivers; the person whose responsibility it is to have these emergency plans in place; the person whose responsibility it is to decide when to put these plans in place; the role his Department plays in these decisions and roll-out; the way the local authorities are to be informed and assisted in the event of any of these scenarios occurring; if an emergency warning plan for media and other organisations has been put in place; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41158/10]

John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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In keeping with international best practice, Ireland follows a generic approach to emergency management, which includes provision for severe weather emergencies. This is set out in A Framework for Major Emergency Management, which was approved by Government in May 2006 and details the processes and procedures for managing and co-ordinating preparedness for, and response to, Major Emergencies.

Each principal response agency (An Garda Síochána divisions, Health Service Executive areas and the main local authorities) has adopted new format Major Emergency Plans with effect from 30 September 2008, based on a common emergency plan template outlined in the Framework.

A National Steering Group, chaired and supported by my Department, and involving the Departments of Justice and Law Reform, Health and Children, Defence and Transport, as well as the principal response agencies and Defence Forces as members, oversaw the roll-out and cut-over to the Framework's arrangements, in accordance with a Government approved "Major Emergency Development Programme" that ran from 2006 until 2008. During this development programme key personnel within An Garda Síochána, the HSE and the local authorities were trained for their emergency management roles. Each agency has a number of people authorised and trained in the process of declaring a Major Emergency.

On specific severe weather preparedness, the Framework requires each local authority to have a specific sub-plan for responding to severe weather events. The Severe Weather Plan can be activated to co-ordinate the response whether a major emergency is declared or not. During the two severe weather events of last winter, for example, the coordination and inter-agency arrangements set out in the Framework were implemented at local and regional level, as required by local circumstances, without the declaration of a major emergency.

Local authorities are provided with information from a number of systems including the Public Service Weather Warnings from Met Eireann, the IceCast Road Weather Information System (RWIS) operated by the National Road Authority in conjunction with Met Eireann, and river and coastal flood warning systems where these are in place. I am aware that OPW is further developing flood forecasting and warning systems. The Framework sets out guidance on contact with the media and providing information to the public.