Green Party Senator Róisín Garvey is introducing a Private Members' Motion on flooding to the Seanad, which will recommend a multi-faceted, catchment-based response to flood management while maintaining a multi-annual investment programme managed between the OPW and the local authorities.

She said: "I'm raising this motion because of what I've seen happening first-hand in my own county of Clare over the last few years and across the rest of Ireland. The climate has changed and so has our rain fall in both frequency and ferocity. I am deeply worried about what lies ahead if we don't take action. International best practice demonstrates that catchment-based solutions, using a combination of natural flood management approaches and hard engineering, are the best way forward and cost less than using only hard engineering solutions."

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The motion calls for planting 'protection forests' along rivers and lakes to manage flooding risks and a land use review of farmland, forests and peatlands.

Senator Pippa Hackett, Minister of State for Land Use and Biodiversity said: "I welcome my colleague Senator Garvey’s motion on flooding. The incidence and severity of flooding is already affecting us with a changing climate. It puts our towns and our farmlands under water. How we adapt to climate change will play a significant role in the wellbeing of so many of our citizens. A land-use review is underway, and this should help inform us how best to mitigate flooding – not just in urban settings, but across farmlands."

The motion also seeks progress on a national policy on coastal erosion and flooding.