Coastal communities to form national network

A NATIONWIDE network of coastal communities could be established within six months thanks in part to research carried out in Cork and Wales.

It is hoped the network will help communities get involved in coastal management issues. It will also bring the communities together to work on bio-diversity and marine awareness issues.

Coastal management issues have previously been handled by local authorities and government bodies.

“This is new because communities will be involved,” said Cathal O’Mahony, a research scientist at University College Cork’s Coastal and Marine Resources Centre, the group who helped carry out the research.

The idea to set up a network of coastal communities came about following a joint research project between the Coastal and Marine Resources Centre in Ringaskiddy and Cardiff University’s Marine and Coastal Environment Group in Wales.

Val Cummins, director of the Irish research team, said: “It was exciting for both countries to investigate innovative approaches to coastal management.”

Groups from coastal communities along the south and east coast of Ireland were invited to attend three workshops - two in Ireland and one in Wales - where they met like-minded community groups, local authority planners and engineers involved in coastal issues.

“We asked the groups what they saw as the issues around coastal management, we asked them to present solutions as to how these things could be overcome, and we brought community groups together with local authority officials,” Mr O’Mahony said.

“It was essentially about bringing people together to share their experiences.

“A lot of work still remains to be done but there are coastal networks in England and Wales.

“A similar network would be beneficial in Ireland,” Mr O’Mahony said.

A declaration by organisers after the research project recognised community involvement as the cornerstone of successful stewardship of coastal resources.

They also urged the governments to support the empowerment of communities, including local government, in the formulation of local action programmes and policy formulation.

Coastal management is one of the crunch issues facing Europe as they come under increasing pressures from climate change, tourism, housing development, ports, fishing and leisure activities, alongside the need to preserve wildlife and scenery.

The research was carried out using EU Interreg funding as part of the CZMNet and CoCoNet project.

UCC’s Coastal and Marine Resources Centre, 021-470 3111 or from [e-mail].