This article is from page 107 of the 2008-02-26 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 107 JPG
CALLS have been made for each of the Burren’s estimate 1,000 farmers to adopt a new labour intensive plan for farming their land.
The call was made yesterday, dur- ing day two of the BurrenLIFE Project (BLP) Conference in En- nistymon, where Burren IFA Presi- dent, Michael Davoren, suggested local farmers should be looking to export “orchid-rich grassland” rather than more traditional farm produce.
The conference, which 1s the first of
it’s kind ever to take place in Ireland, aims at designing an economically viable way of preserving the fragile Burren landscape.
‘There is a need for local resources to work to create a unique manage- ment plan for each farm in the Bur- ren and to monitor the environmental work required,’ said Mr Davoren.
“Orchid-rich grasslands and other habitats will become the new prod- ucts. A labour-intensive method of farming is essential in this environ- ment but a farmer needs to earn an income from doing this very neces-
sary work to preserve the Burren for future generations.”
The conference marks the fourth year in operation for the Carron based BurrenLIFE Project, which has been working towards generat- ing a blueprint for sustainable farm- ing not just in Ireland, but across the EU.
Project head, Dr Brendan Dunford, revealed yesterday that this blueprint would be launched before August of next year.
‘Farming is the key land use to have shaped this landscape in the past,
and will continue to play a key role in shaping it in future. It 1s critical therefore that we identify and sup- port sustainable farming systems for the Burren, and that we do it now,” he said.
“While the BurrenLIFE project will soon finalise a blueprint for sus- tainable farming of the Burren, this will need to be adopted urgently and wholeheartedly by the relevant au- thorities if we are to secure the re- gion’s rich heritage for generations to come.
“We welcome this conference as
an opportunity to celebrate the work achieved by the BLP and partners over the past four years, but also, as we approach the end of the project, to pose the question of where do we 20 from here.”
According to Dr Andrew Bleasdale of the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), the challenge now is how best to implement the find- ings of the BurrenLIFE Project.
“The project will provide a conser- vation-friendly road-map for farm- ing not just in the Burren but also in other parts of the country,’ he said.