The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien TD, has extended the pyrite remediation scheme to include the administrative area of Limerick City and County Council, which will see homeowners of dwellings with significant damage attributable to pyritic heave in County Limerick eligible to apply for remediation works under the Pyrite Remediation Scheme.
Previously, only the owners of dwellings located within the counties of Kildare, Meath or Offaly or the administrative areas of Fingal County Council, Dublin City Council, Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown or South Dublin were eligible to apply for remediation works under the scheme.
€20m was provided under Budget 2020 to cover the implementation of the pyrite remediation scheme and is a clear signal of the continuing importance attached by Government to addressing the issue of significant pyritic damage in private dwellings. This will bring to approx. €150m the total funding provided under the scheme since 2014.
The latest figures available indicate that up to 2,800 applications have been received under the Pyrite Remediation Scheme. Of these, 2,000 dwellings have been remediated under the scheme at an average cost of approx. €70,000 per dwelling.
Commenting as he visited the 2000th home to be remediated under the scheme in Balbriggan Co. Dublin, Minister O’Brien said, “I am very glad to extend the pyrite remediation scheme to the people of Limerick and I fully intend on ensuring that ultimately all eligible homeowners of dwellings affected by significant damage attributable to pyritic heave can have their homes remediated under the scheme,” he concluded.
The Housing Agency undertakes the remediation of properties affected by pyritic heave once accepted into the scheme through the Pyrite Resolution Board.
Pyritic material is naturally occurring in rock which was inadvertently used as stone fill under concrete floor slabs but is unsuitable for this purpose as it is subject to expansion over time when exposed to moisture. The expansion commonly causes severe cracking of floor slabs and other building elements and can make dwellings uninhabitable.
The Pyrite Resolution Act 2013 was enacted to put in place a scheme for the remediation of dwellings adversely affected by pyrite. The Act established the Pyrite Resolution Board who consider applications to the scheme and oversee the procurement of the remediation. Implementation of the Pyrite Remediation Scheme is by The Housing Agency.
The remediation process involves excavation and replacement of the entire ground floor structure within a dwelling, including all associated replacement of finishes, plumbing and electrical services. It normally requires the scheme participant to vacate their home for 3 months while the works are completed.
Full details of the Pyrite Remediation Scheme, including details of how to apply are available from the Pyrite Resolution Board website at www.pyriteboard.ie.
