An Oireachtas committee has been advised a €50,000 boom will have to be deployed on a top angling and leisure river in Co Cork or risk cancelling a number of sporting and social events due to a rapidly-collapsing pier.

The weir on the River Blackwater in Fermoy is crumbling - and threatening the economic livelihood of a North Cork town, according to local councillors who have asked for remedial works to halt the damage.

There has still been no response from the OPW to an October 31 letter from Cork county council engineers seeking grant-aid from the Government for repairs to a crumbling weir.

Anger has been expressed at a delay in fixing an important weir, a large section of which has crumbled away in recent days.

Lobby groups fighting to repair an important weir and fish pass on the River Blackwater in Co Cork believe it could be destroyed by a flood if they have to wait 22 months for the work to start.