Achill Sewerage scheme to be completed by summer

Achill Sewerage scheme has summer completion date


Anton McNulty

MAYO County Council has been asked to draw up a report on restoring the road through the village of Achill Sound following the completion of the sewerage scheme after it was revealed the contractor will only restore the part of the road which he dug up.
At last week’s meeting of the Belmullet Electoral Area committee, it was revealed that 84 per cent of connections were completed and the pipeworks were expected to be completed by early March. It was also revealed that the sewerage scheme should be operational by the summer.
This news was welcomed by local councillor, MicheΡl McNamara but he said the road surface going through the village was in a terrible condition and called for a new surface to be laid. He said the road was in a bad condition before the work stated and said it has deteriorated further during construction.
“I appreciate the contractor will reinstate the trenches which they dug up as part of the work but I would ask that the Council take a close look at the road surface going through Achill Sound. With the amount of traffic going through the village the road has deteriorated and we need to look at doing something about the surface. I am asking the Council to look at it and do a report on restoring the surface,” he said.
Cllr McNamara also added that the footpaths were also deteriorating where they were affected by the work and they will also have to be replaced. He said there were two very active community groups in Polranny and Achill Sound and asked that the Council liaise with these groups to get their input.
He was supported by Cllr Michael Holmes who quipped that the Council did not need to take a close look at the road because you could see the damage from a plane. He added that the best part of the road was the part reinstated by the contractor and said funding should be made available for the road in time for the tourist season.
“The state of the road has been terrible for some time but we were told it would not be fixed until the scheme takes place. We need to put a plan together if the scheme is finished by the summer because we can’t leave the village like that,” he said.
Director of Services, Peter Hynes said that it was always the Council’s policy to leave a place in a better condition than when they found it but this would be now more challenging than in the past. He said the Road Works scheme would tell a lot on what work they will be able to undertake but they would welcome the input of community groups.