Higher road will raise food levels in the city
The road is prone to flooding at high tide, but raising the level will only postpone future flooding there while increasing the probability and severity of flooding elsewhere in the city.
The answer to city flooding is to dredge the riverbed and then displace the water by depositing the silt on the estuary mudflats, reclaiming land to a level of at least two metres above the high tide level. If necessary the silt could be pumped behind an artificial barrier surrounding an enclosed mudflat.
The effect of this would be to displace sufficient water to prevent flooding in the city centre and the massive insurance costs to businesses located there.
The city council would gain by developing land with great economic potential near Little Island.
Costal reclamation projects are potential alternatives to inland landfill sites such as that proposed for Bottlehill.
There would also be a reduced risk of river pollution due to proximity to tidal water, and another byproduct would be valuable commercial land.
Such a project would also eliminate the need for a dioxin-making incinerator to be built in Ringaskiddy.
The relative isolation of the estuary mudflats should make such a project more acceptable to all concerned.
Finally, dredging is necessary to accommodate the larger ships which use the Port of Cork.
Roy Mannix,
The Heathers,
Ardfallen Grove,
Douglas Road,
Cork.
