HEART BEAT:While the fowl are fine, a whole village may be wiped out, writes MAURICE NELIGAN
I HAVE always been an omnivorous reader. Selectivity was an alien concept until it finally dawned on me that I was not going to be able to read everything; time was not on my side. Now I'm not quite as bad as I used to be and have managed to discard the odd book, but I still have the compulsion described by St Augustine in his Confessions; "tolle lege, tolle lege"or take up and read.
Apart from schoolbooks and medical textbooks and journals, I seldom read anything because I ought to, or because everybody was reading it, or that you were only half educated if you could not appreciate the literary genius of the work. I read for pleasure and relaxation and for education beyond the narrow confines of professional life. Consequently I read acres of chaff but also the odd grains of wheat.
As a youngster I read all the works of Arthur Ransome, author of Swallows and Amazons, Coot Club, Winter Holiday, Swallowdaleand Great Northernamong others. These books transported me into a different life and left me a legacy of interest in outdoor life, astronomy, geology and ornithology in particular. These interests have remained with me since and have enriched my life.
Maybe I missed out on monsters, space travel, daleks, ravening dinosaurs and other fearsome creatures but this little earthbound creature was quite happy.
Here in Kerry we are situated on the Caragh estuary where the river flows into Castlemaine harbour. That is the eastern part of Dingle bay, inside the promontories of Inch and Rossbeigh. The area is home to many species of birds, waterfowl and land based, breeding or seasonal and wintering. A good pair of binoculars has provided me with much pleasure at all seasons in this lovely environment.
Being a local householder I received a document recently from the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government. This cited National Parks and Wildlife Services (NPWS) Ref Castlemaine Harbour, 4029 and presumably was sent to all householders in this vast area. It condescendingly told us “why Castlemaine Harbour is of Ecological Interest”. How patronising is that? We know. We live here. Many depend on the area for their livelihood. We are proud and conscious of our heritage and well aware that we share this with other flora and fauna.
This document tells us that this area has been designated as a Special Protection Area (SPA) under the EU Birds Directive. It lists the numerous species which avail of this excellent habitat. It tells us that the Light-bellied Brent Goose occurs here in numbers of international importance. Incidentally to this untrained eye there were more of these birds here this year than in many previous seasons. It tells us that the area contains nationally important populations of a further 15 species and that it includes a nature reserve and two wildfowl sanctuaries. In the 30 years I have been coming here I have seen little change in the populations of the birds listed.
At the outset of these moves from Brussels, money was provided for bird counts in these areas, in 2000-2001. This was not done and the monies were not drawn down. This was culpable neglect and the consequences are very serious. Not for the birds, who appear to be fine, but for the people who live here and the communities who depend on the mussel industry based around Cromane.
This document does not mention people, communities and livelihoods. It could be described fairly as the “Birds before People” directive. There are a lot of activities listed which if undertaken in the area would require Ministerial consent. Among these “dredging whether for fishing or other purposes” also “harvesting marine species unless for personal use not exceeding certain limits as may be set by the Minister from time to time”. There are many more prohibitions which would affect everyday life here.
If implemented in current form it would wipe out the village of Cromane and its 150-year-old, export-orientated mussel industry. About 150 jobs would go and the young folk, taught assiduously in school to respect their environment, would face the emigrant ship. The birds and the fishermen have lived in harmony over the years and there is not one whit of proof to the contrary.