I want to see these 16 pinch points dealt with because in removing them we will drop the levels of the Shannon downstream of Athlone right down to where Deputy Harty lives. We are talking about dropping the level of the Shannon a foot and a half. The number of people who would benefit from this – the local farmer, the local business, BirdWatch Ireland – is enormous. The Government is committed to putting huge money into this.
Kevin Moran TD (Ind, Longford-Westmeath), minister for draining the Shannon, in a Dáil Topical Issue Debate on Flood Risk Management on 16 October 2019.
I wonder which level he’s talking about.
Irish waterways history 
I guess that he hasn’t considered what happens further downstream if you increase the flow upstream. Flood plains are called that for a reason, and the fertility of the land is dependent on the floods.