University College Cork v Electricity Supply Board (ESB)

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Judge: Mr Justice Max Barrett
• Judgment Date: 05 October 2015
• Neutral Citation: [2015] IEHC 598
• Court: High Court
• Date: 05 October 2015

University College Cork v Electricity Supply Board (ESB)

Approved Judgment

No Redaction Needed

BETWEEN:

UNIVERSITY COLLEGE CORK - NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF IRELAND

Plaintiff

AND

THE ELECTRICITY SUPPLY BOARD

Defendant

[2015] IEHC 598

Record No. 129P/2012

THE HIGH COURT

1 JUDGMENT of Mr Justice Max Barrett delivered on 5th October, 2015.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

2 [Square bracketed numbers in Table of Contents are paragraph numbers].

CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW. [1].

CHAPTER 2: STATUTORY BEGINNINGS [2].

The Act of 1945.	[2].
Preparing and approving schemes.	[3].
Executing approved schemes.	[4].
Generating and distributing electricity.	[5].
Section 28 and statutory immunity.	[6].
Section 34 and statutory duty.	[9].
Interim Electricity Generation Licence.	[10].

CHAPTER 3: THE RIVER LEE AND ITS CATCHMENT. [11].

Source and flow of river Lee.	[11].
Characteristics of catchment.	[12].

CHAPTER 4: THE RIVER LEE WITHIN CORK CITY. [13].

A city on a floodplain.	[13].
The modern city and the river.	[14].
UCC buildings.	[15].

CHAPTER 5: HISTORY OF FLOODING IN CORK CITY. [27].

CHAPTER 6: OVERVIEW OF THE LEE HYDROELECTRIC SCHEME. [28].

Approval of Scheme.	[28].
General description.	[29].
Carrigadrohid Dam and Reservoir.	[30].
Spillways.	[31].
Fish pass.	[32].
Inniscarra Dam and Reservoir.	[33].
Spillway.	[34].
Scour.	[35].
Fish pass.	[36].
Size of Scheme.	[37].
Fresh-water supply.	[38].
River-flow levels.	[39].
Fishery protection.	[40].
Wetland protection.	[41].

CHAPTER 7: HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF UCC CAMPUS. [42].

1845-1972.	[42].
Master-plans.	[43].
The Development Plan Review (1993).	[44].
The Master-plan Review (2004).	[45].
History and Development of Tyndall National Institute.	[46].
The Buildings Committee.	[47].

Previous History of Flooding at UCC.	[48].
Mitigation of Flood Risks Known to UCC.	[50].
Flood protection and flooding at Glucksman Gallery.	[52].
Flood protection and flooding at Western Gateway.	[53].
Flood protection and flooding at the Environmental Research Institute.	[54].
UCC's response to the flooding of November, 2009.	[56].
Heightened awareness of flood risk.	[58].

CHAPTER 8: RESERVOIR TYPES. [59].

Purpose(s) of reservoirs.	[59].
Flood-control reservoir.	[60].
Hydropower reservoir.	[61].
Comparison of flood-control/hydropower reservoirs.	[62].
Dual-purpose reservoirs.	[63].
The 'design flood'.	[64].

CHAPTER 9: MAXNOL AND TTOL. [65].

MaxNOL defined.	[65].
Use of space above MaxNOL.	[66].
TTOL.	[67].
Is TTOL a level?	[68].
Obligation to achieve TTOL.	[69].
Some summary conclusions regarding TTOL.	[71].

CHAPTER 10: THE LEE REGULATIONS. [72].

Use and substance of operational rules.	[72].
The Lee Regulations: overview.	[73].
Dam integrity.	[74].
Water discharge-levels.	[75].
Communication breakdown between dams.	[76].
Evolution of Lee Regulations.	[77].
General structure of current Lee Regulations.	[84].
Summary of staff responsibilities.	[85].
Part I ("Regulations for Flood Management").	[86].
Flood periods.	[92].
Notifications and warnings.	[94].
ESB's Flood Model.	[95].
Flood operations: Carrigadrohid.	[97].
Flood operations: Inniscarra.	[98].
Falling flood.	[99].
Inniscarra tables.	[100].
Water Management Guidelines.	[101].
The Gearagh Wetlands.	[102].
Water abstraction.	[103].

CHAPTER 11: HYDROELECTRIC OPERATION. [104].

A natural tension.	[104].
Electricity generation versus flood alleviation.	[105].
TTOL.	[106].

Consequences of preferring hydro-electric generation.	[107].
Dam safety.	[108].
Acceptance that Lee Dams operate with objective of flood alleviation.	[109].

CHAPTER 12: WEATHER, RAINFALL, LEVEL AND DISCHARGE MEASUREMENTS. [110].

Private weather forecasts.	[110].
Rain-gauges.	[111].
Level and discharge measurements.	[112].
Cross-checking and averaging.	[113].
Calculation of in-flow.	[114].
River-gauging.	[115].

CHAPTER 13: A RAINY NOVEMBER. [116].

Rainfall data.	[116].
Recorded rainfall.	[117].

CHAPTER 14: THE FLOOD EVENTS OF NOVEMBER 2009. [118].

Introduction.	[118].
Monday, 16 th November, 2009.	[119].
Tuesday, 17 th November, 2009.	[129].
Wednesday, 18 th November, 2009.	[134].
Thursday, 19 th November, 2009.	[140].
Friday, 20 th November, 2009.	[218].

CHAPTER 15: DAMAGE DONE TO UCC'S PROPERTY. [240].

Overview.	[240].
Castlewhite Apartments.	[241].
Connolly Building.	[242].
Enterprise and Butler Buildings.	[243].
Glucksman Building.	[244].
Sports facilities.	[245].
Tyndall Buildings.	[246].
University Hall Apartments.	[247].
Victoria Lodge Apartments.	[248].
Western Gateway.	[249].
Western Road houses and Ferry Lodge.	[250].

CHAPTER 16: ESB'S APPROACH TO DAM SAFETY. [251].

ESB's hydro-electric portfolio.	[251].
Flood Control and Dam Safety Study.	[252].
'Overtopping'.	[253].
Results of Flood Control and Dam Safety Studies.	[254].
Dam safety as operated today.	[255].
Chief Civil Engineer.	[256].
The External Dam Safety Committee.	[257].
Hydro Stations Manager and Supervising Engineer.	[258].
The Lee Regulations.	[259].

CHAPTER 17: GENERAL PROVISION OF INFORMATION BY ESB. [260].

Overview.	[260].
Commencement of Dams - 2009.	[261].
22 nd June, 1987.	[262].
22 nd February, 1988.	[263].
21 st March, 1988.	[264].
11 th November, 1993.	[265].
Circa. April 2002.	[266].
Information provided to local authorities on 19 th November, 2009.	[267].

CHAPTER 18: FLOOD WARNINGS. [268].

Duty to warn?	[268].
Usefulness and need for warnings.	[270].
Flood prediction.	[272].
Assumption of responsibility.	[274].
A chronology of the flood warnings of November 2009.	[275].
Deficiencies in warnings.	[276].
UCC's Response to Warnings Received.	[277].
ESB's 25 contentions.	[279].
Some conclusions.	[280].

CHAPTER 19: ESB'S FLOOD INUNDATION STUDIES. [281].

Various inundation studies.	[281].
[1] River Lee Inundation Study (March 1988).	[282].
[2] Carrigadrohid Inundation Study (August 1992).	[283].

[3] Cork City Inundation Study (September 1994).	[284].
[4] River Lee Levels - Cork City (September 1994).	[285].
Interaction with local authorities and others.	[286].
Significance of inundation studies.	[287].

CHAPTER 20: FLOOD ALLEVIATION EFFECTS OF LEE RESERVOIRS. [288].

CHAPTER 21: CFRAMS AND FLOOD RELIEF. [289].

CFRAMS and Lower Lee Flood Relief Scheme.	[289].
Interim flood relief measures.	[290].
Significance of CFRAMS, etc.	[291].

CHAPTER 22: THE BUSINESS AND BENEFITS OF HYDRO-ELECTRICITY. [292].

Commercial purpose of Lee Dams.	[292].
Hydro-electricity and electricity prices.	[293].
Scale of revenue earned.	[294].
Hydro-electricity and grid system support.	[295].
'Black-start' support.	[296].
Hydro-electricity generation and CO2 emissions.	[297].
Water-supply.	[298].

CHAPTER 23: KEY DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE. [299].

Limited number of key documents.	[299].
Interim Electricity Generation Licence granted to ESB.	[300].
Lee Dams Publicity Brochure.	[301].

The Contribution to Irish Society of Irish Hydro-Electric Dams.	[303].
"River Lee: Assessment of dam safety" (1987).	[304].
Internal Paper on "Hydro Generating Plant: Limits on Use of Storage" (1979).	[305].
"River Lee Levels - Cork City (Sensitivity to Inniscarra Discharges)" (September 1994).	[306].
Report on Management of Lee Floods of February 1997.	[307].
Presentation to National Hydrological Conference (2001).	[308].
Cork Joint Emergency Group Presentation (2002).	[309].
Submission to Review of Government Policy on Flood Relief (2003).	[310].
Report of AXA Insurance (2004).	[311].
Report on Lee Flood of December 2006.	[317].
CIBSE Presentation (2007).	[319].
Lee Stations Presentation to UCC BSc Environmental Studies Group (2007).	[320].
Note during Hydrometric Review done by OPW (2007).	[321].
Dam Safety Presentation to the OPW (2009).	[322].
ESBI Reports on Lee Flood Events of November 2009.	[323].

CHAPTER 24: EXPERT EVIDENCE. [326].

CHAPTER 25: MR SHIBATANI'S EVIDENCE. [327].

Description of expert and overview of evidence.	[327].
Multi-purpose or single purpose?	[328].
Water-levels (rule curves).	[329].
Flood-damage reduction.	[330].
Management of the flood events of November 2009.	[331].
[1]. Static water levels.	[332].

[2]. 'Empty space' failures.	[333].
[3]. Reliance on prescribed actions.	[334].
[4]. Specificity in the Regulations.	[336].
[5]. Transparency in decision-making.	[337].
[6]. Non-compliance with ESB's operating levels.	[338].
[7]. Tie between prescribed water/discharge levels.	[339].
[8]. Reactive decision-making.	[340].
[9]. High refill potential.	[341].
[10]. Quick reduction of water...