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____________________________________________________ The Ballyannan Wood management plan was launched on Saturday 10 March 2007 as part of National Tree Week. The launch took
place in Ballyannan Wood, and was accompanied by a tree planting ceremony by John Landy, Coillte and Tom
Gittings, CNT. The launch was followed by a walk around the wood. Our thanks to Irene from Midleton's O2 office who attended
the launch and tree planting. O2 are the sponsors of National Tree Week. ____________________________________________________ Ballyannan
Wood The
County Nature Trust has been working in partnership with Coillte to develop an educational/amenity nature reserve at Ballyannan
Wood. Ballyannan
Wood is a 24.5 ha mature mixed woodland, owned by Coillte (www.coillte.ie).
It is located on the Owenacurra Estuary south of Midleton. It is an ancient woodland and holds a diverse range of woodland
habitats with notable features including a visually spectacular ground flora, veteran trees and a population of Red Squirrels.
The County Nature Trust has carried out detailed surveys of the wood.
For further information click here. The County Nature Trust
has prepared proposals for small-scale habitat management. These proposals are targeted at enhancing important features and
developing habitats that are poorly represented in the wood.
Click here for further information on small-scale habitat management in Ballyannan Wood. A steering committee
has been established to develop a management plan for Ballyannan Wood. This steering committee includes representatives from
Cork County Council, the County Nature Trust, East Cork Area Development Ltd., Midleton Town Council, and the National Parks
and Wildlife Service.
Click here for further information on the Management Plan
The marsh supports nationally important numbers of waterbirds
(principally black-tailed godwit and curlew). Three scarce plant species occur: Chaffweed (Anagallis minima), Dotted
Sedge (Carex punctata) and Yellow Bartsia (Parentucellia viscosa). The lagoon supports specialist lagoonal invertebrates,
and a partial evaluation indicates that the ecotonal invertebrate fauna may be of conservation importance. The site is owned
by Cork County Council and two private developers. These three landowners have agreed to manage the marsh as a nature reserve. Commoge Marsh
is a site of high nature conservation importance with complex ecological features that are potentially very sensitive to management
intervention. It is also an important amenity feature in the Kinsale area. While a number of previous ecological reports have
been prepared relating to the site, these have all been prepared in response to specific development proposals and do not
consider the management of the site as a whole. It was, therefore, important that a comprehensive plan was prepared so that
any management will be clearly focused and does not cause inadvertent damage to the site. The management plan, includes
an objective appraisal of the site, identification of the important features of the site (including educational/amenity features),
and Action Plans for management actions required to maintain/enhance these features.
Click for Management Plan Summary A steering committee was set up to oversee the preparation of the management plan,
and will be responsible for its implementation. This steering committee includes representatives of Birdwatch Ireland,
Cork County Council, County Nature Trust, National Parks and Wildlife, E & T Builders, Fleming Construction Ltd., Kinsale
Town Council, and McInerney Construction Ltd. RPS Group Ltd. consultants were commissioned to prepare the management
plan under the direction of this steering committee. Work is now
beginning on implementing the Action Plans and updates on our progress with this work will be posted on this website. If you
have any queries about this project, please contact the Heritage Unit, Cork County Council, 021 4818000.
Clogheen Marsh
We are working
in partnership with the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) to carry out habitat enhancement works at Clogheen Marsh. Clogheen Marsh
is a 65 ha coastal wetland near Clonakilty owned by NPWS. The site contains a diverse range of wetland habitats including
coastal lagoons, saltmarsh, wet grassland, marsh, swamp and wet woodland. It is also an important feeding and roosting area
for the internationally important waterbird populations that winter in Clonakilty Bay. The site is part of the Clonakilty
Bay SAC/SPA. While this
site is already of high nature conservation value, there is great potential for making the site even more important. We have
prepared a concept design for the enhancement and management of this site for nature conservation. This design has targeted
actions to benefit important habitats and 24 bird species of high nature conservation importance (red and amber listed species). As a major
component of our proposals involves hydrological management of the site, we have commissioned the Wetlands Advisory Service
(See Link Below) to carry out a feasibility study. This study will assess the technical feasibility of our proposals and their
impact on existing interests, and provide a costed work programme for advancing the project. This feasibility study is under
way, and forms the first stage of the project. This project is supported by West Cork Leader under the National Rural Development Programme.
Wetlands Advisory Service (LINK) Important Notice |
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