The Government has reminded local authorities of their obligation to enforce regulations against the use of a building mineral alleged to have caused cracks in the flooring of houses in a north Dublin estate. Arthur Beesley,Senior Business Correspondent, reports.
The reminder indicates that building firms may face a renewed level of scrutiny on the materials they use, following problems in a Kinsealy estate built by Menolly Homes.
Cracks on the floors of homes in the Drynam Hall estate have led homes in other developments built with material from the same quarry being examined.
However, the homebuilders' warranty organisation, Homebond, said there is "no indication" that the problem is widespread.
Menolly Homes, which promised to replace cracked flooring, has initiated legal action against the quarry. The quarry is owned by Irish Asphalt, a division of the Belfast-based Lagan Group. Lagan declined this week to comment, besides saying it was confident its position would be upheld.
Minister for the Environment John Gormley asked local authorities to co-operate in enforcing regulations against minerals such as pyrite, the product believed to be behind the faults.
In a letter to city and county managers on Thursday, the Minister's department pointed out the building control officer in each local authority is authorised to implement building regulations.
"Where an authorised officer is of the opinion that a person is placing a product that does not comply with the . . . requirements, the authorised officer can request all the information(s) he may require for the purposes of establishing whether the product satisfies the foregoing requirements," the letter said.
"Pyrite is a commonly occurring mineral in rock. In certain conditions, oxidation of pyrite and further chemical reaction between the oxidation productions and other components of underfloor filling can occur, leading to a volume increase, causing the floor slabs to lift and crack, and with a knock-on effect of distorting walls, etc.
"For this reason, pyritic rock should not be used as hardcore filling under ground bearing concrete floors. In the light of these developments, authorities are reminded of the existing requirements under the Building Regulations and the EU Construction Products Directive."
The letter requested the co-operation of local authorities to enforce such regulations. These include technical regulations which say that the floors of a building should be designed to "prevent the passage of moisture to the inside of the building or damage to the fibre of the building". Another regulation cited says all construction works should be carried out with "proper materials" .
