Co. Roscommon lake reduces by level 'unheard of'
Temporary flood pumps which have been in operation at Lough Funshinagh in Co. Roscommon since April 1 of this year have been turned off.
The pumps were switched off due to the lake reaching an agreed level.
Laurence Fallon, a local independent councillor for the Athlone municipal district told Agriland about the latest development.
He said: “This lake in the wintertime should be about 600ac, and at its peak it was about 1,300ac.
“Since 2015 it has never gone down below the high winter level, even in the middle of summer.
Cllr Fallon said that, two winters ago when the lake reached an all-time high, Roscommon County Council in cooperation with the Office of Public Works (OPW) devised two plans.
“One plan was to send a submission to An Bord Pleanála with back-up research to create a permanent solution, and that is on-going, which will probably lodge with them hopefully at the end of this year.
“In the meantime, while this planning was continuing, it was feared we would lose all the surrounding villages because of the height of the lake.
“So, Roscommon County Council and the OPW lodged a temporary emergency plan to pump water out of Lough Funshinagh on a temporary basis to reduce the level to protect the houses, as opposed to restoring the lake to its natural level," he said.
Fallon said that An Bord Pleanála granted permission for the temporary project last November and a pumping mechanism was installed in early April.
The pump was intended to remove water from the lake until it reached the agreed height of 67.5m, which is the level of the lowest lying house surrounding the lake.
The councillor highlighted that 2024 had been the "driest winter we've ever had around here", and this led to the level of the lake reducing rapidly.
He said: "Traditionally the lake would rise about 2m in the winter, but from November 1 to May 1, it went down by half a meter, which is unheard of previous to this.
“Because of this, the lake reached the agreed level of 67.5m, and due to the planning rules and regulations, the pump had to be turned off.
“The pump will have to remain off until such time as the lake rises again above 67.5m. It’s currently at a height of about 66.9m. So its now over half a meter lower than the level at which it can pump at."
