Wheelchair access plans scrapped at two Cork Blue Flag beaches over storm concerns

Council engineers said exposed conditions and tidal activity made beach matting at the two South Cork beaches impractical

Cork County Council had been planning to install beach matting at the two Blue Flag beaches in South Cork — Garretstown and Garrylucas. Picture: Larry Cummins

Wheelchair users hoping to access two Blue Flag beaches in Co Cork have had their hopes dashed by climate change and the increasing likelihood of more violent coastal storms.

Cork County Council had been planning to install beach matting at the two Blue Flag beaches in South Cork, but that is not going to happen now because council engineers have decided that the potential for increased violence in coastal storms is likely to wash away the special matting needed to get wheelchair users across the sand and into the water.

The disappointing news about the planned disability access to the beaches at Garrylucas Beach and Garretstown, near Kinsale, was provided to councillors attending a recent meeting of the Bandon/Kinsale Municipal District Council by its municipal officer, Brian Dunne.

He said that following consultation with both the county council’s engineering team and the matting supplier, it had been decided after their combined assessment that Garrylucas and Garretstown beaches would not be suitable locations for the installation of beach access matting and that tidal fluctuations would also be an issue.

“The matting system is designed to be laid directly on the sand. Given the exposed nature of these two beaches, together with the prevalence of extreme weather conditions and high tidal activity, there is a significant risk that the matting could be displaced or washed away from its intended location,” Mr Dunne said.

He said that to mitigate against these risks, the beach matting would need to be removed and reinstated around each high tide event, which would require significant “dedicated (council) staffing resources” – which the local authority doesn’t have.

It also doesn't have the funding to employ contractors to do the work.

“At present, it's not considered operationally feasible. It's therefore considered that beach matting would be more appropriate at sheltered coastal locations where exposure to tidal and weather-related impacts is significantly reduced,” Mr Dunne said.

He added, however, that he and the council’s engineers will look to see if there are any other beaches in the municipal area which might be suitable for beach matting for wheelchair users.

Temporary toilets to close

Meanwhile, beach users got more negative news when it was disclosed that the council is to close the temporary toilets at Castlepark, Kinsale, for the winter.

It follows similar closures of portaloos in the Carrigaline Municipal District area, as the local authority says it simply hasn’t got the budget to keep such facilities open during the off-peak months.

On a more positive note, council engineers said that permanent toilets in Garretstown had undergone a significant upgrade and are working well.

They added that the permanent toilets in Kinsale town centre have now been re-roofed and the installation of new windows and doors in the toilet block will be completed shortly.