FARM ORGANISATIONS North and South have united in their opposition to the proposed creation of national and geo-parks on private lands in the Mourne mountains and Cooley peninsula.
Representatives of the Irish Farmers’ Association and the Ulster Farmers’ Union met this week in Kilkeel, Co Down, to oppose the cross-Border initiative.They were joined by representatives of the Mourne Residents Action Group.
The organisations agreed the creation of national parks on private lands was an attack on the rights of landowners.
Proposals to establish a cross-Border geo-park covering the Mournes in Co Down and the Cooley peninsula in Co Louth were rejected out of hand, and local authorities from both jurisdictions were called on to abandon such plans.
The proposals include the establishment of national parks on land involving 1,900 farmers from the Mournes, and proposals from Louth County Council and Newry and Mourne District Council for a cross-Border geo-park, as both areas share the same geographic features.
Irish Farmers’ Association vice-president JJ Kavanagh, who attended the meeting, said farmers in these areas had enough restrictions imposed on them through land designation, farming and development.
Furthermore, he said landscape management proposals being put forward by Minister for the Environment John Gormley would be seen by farmers as a way of nationalising land.
Ulster Farmers’ Union president Graham Furey said: “Proposals for such parks cannot proceed against the wishes of the key shareholders – the people who own and look after the land.”
The Mourne Residents Action Group said it was delighted all involved were working together.
Last month Down District Council was told a submission had been made to a Special European Programmes Body for €2 million for the geo-tourism project.
Louth County Council, Newry and Mourne District Council and Banbridge District Council economic development committees have approved the project.
Consultations in Co Down have shown a high level of acceptance of the cross-Border project by everyone except the farming community, who believe any parks will impose restrictions on farming and bring people onto their lands.
Nearly 10 per cent of the residents of the Mourne mountains said they believed designating their area as a national park would increase the price of housing and would lead to planning restrictions in the building area.