Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien has called for an audit to be carried out in Donegal in the wake of the Mica crisis.
The Business Post reports that all quarries in the county will be subject to the study by the National Building Control Office.
The audit will investigate if bricks being produced in the county are compliant with regulations. There are 171 quarries registered with Donegal County Council.
The National Standards Authority of Ireland withdrew certification from a Donegal block manufacturer on 15th October. The manufacturer, NSAI reports, was unable to demonstrate they were capable of producing products to the required standard.
In June 2017, the Report of the Expert Panel on Concrete Blocks found that enforcement of construction product laws was performed within local authority budgets during the time period under review. The panel noted that they did not have the technical resources in-house to test products which may have been non-compliant. Enforcement action, they found, was generally carried out on a reactive basis.
Minister O’Brien expects to bring an ‘enhanced’ Mica redress scheme to the Cabinet on 9th November. The new scheme is expected to be overseen by the Housing Agency rather than local authorities.
