Construction is to begin soon on a £6.2 million causeway to the proposed sewage treatment plant at Mutton Island in Galway. This follows the Department of the Environment's approval of a tender for the project this week.
The Minister for the Environment, Mr Noel Dempsey, yesterday approved Galway Corporation's recommended tender from Ascon Ltd of Kill, Co Kildare.
The contract is for the construction of an 840-metre causeway linking Mutton Island with the mainland at South Park, including a wide concrete road and railed footpath above the high water mark.
Controversy was generated over the Mutton Island plan when the actor, Mr Ray McBride, appealed the corporation's decisions to the High Court and the Supreme Court, which granted the go-ahead to the project last week.
The Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Mr Robert Molloy, has welcomed the latest announcement. "I believe that the Mutton Island development is the best option," he said. "Having the waste discharged in deep water will safeguard bathing water quality and shell fishing activity, particularly in inner Galway Bay."