A 2.35-kilometre underground pipeline carrying excess water from Lough Funshinagh to the Cross River has emerged as the preferred long-term solution to the area’s persistent flooding problems.
Details of the emerging preferred option were presented to members of the public at the fourth consultation event for the Lough Funshinagh Climate Adaptation Project at the Hodson Bay Hotel on Monday.
Under the proposal, the permanent scheme would effectively build upon the temporary flood-relief measures currently operating at the lake.
The preferred corridor would see an underground pipeline installed between Lough Funshinagh and the Cross River.
The pipeline would cross agricultural land and two local roads, with affected land reinstated following construction.
The proposal follows detailed assessment of nine potential options which were presented during the project’s previous public consultation in April.
Roscommon County Council says those options were assessed against the project’s two main objectives: effectively managing flood risk while minimising the environmental impact within the highly sensitive area surrounding Lough Funshinagh.
The turlough is designated as a Special Area of Conservation and has experienced severe and recurring flooding, including major flooding events in 2010, 2016, 2021 and 2024.
The flooding has threatened homes, farmland and infrastructure in the area and led to a long-running effort to identify a legally and environmentally viable permanent solution.
An interim flood relief scheme received planning permission in January 2025.
Overground pumping from Lough Funshinagh towards the Cross River subsequently began in April 2025 and has been used to help manage water levels while work on a permanent scheme continues.
The emerging permanent proposal would replace that arrangement with underground infrastructure.
Current project timelines envisage a planning application being submitted to An Coimisiún Pleanála during the first quarter of 2027.
Subject to the statutory planning process and the necessary approvals, enabling and construction works could then commence in 2028.
However, the emerging preferred corridor is not yet the final approved scheme.
The latest stage of public consultation will help inform the development of the preferred scheme before it progresses through the statutory planning process.
Members of the public and other stakeholders can make submissions on the emerging preferred corridor until 5 pm on Monday, October 19.
The consultation documentation is available through Roscommon County Council’s online consultation portal.
