This article is from page 52 of the 2009-01-13 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 52 JPG
THE Cliffs of Moher have been picked to represent Ireland in a bid to find the new seven wonders of nature – beating the Burren to the precious nomination.
The north Clare tourist attraction is among the 261 global beauty spots which were chosen following an online public vote run by a private Swiss organisation.
The cliffs will compete for a place in the top seven with well-known at- tractions such as the Grand Canyon, Ayers Rock and the Amazon rain forest.
“It is not surprising given the glo- bal recognition factor of the cliffs. They have been used by other Irish brands for promotion and as an icon- ic view of Ireland,” said a spokesper- son from the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience.
The 214-metre-high sea cliffs were the most visited natural attraction in Ireland in 2007 with almost one mil- lion visitors.
The Cliffs of Moher have already passed the first knockout round of competition, surviving when nomi- nated sites were narrowed down from 400 to 261. The Burren, which made it into the last 400, was cut during this process.
Considerable controversy has sur- rounded the voting method as the
organisers allowed entrants to pur- chase additional votes through a text-messaging service.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco), which awards World Her- itage status to historical sites world- wide, has reportedly pulled out of supporting the awards because of the controversy.
An Irish advertising campaign to promote voting for the cliffs was be- ing planned following the announce- ment. The list will be narrowed down to 77 by public vote over the next seven months. Votes can be cast at Www.new/wonders.com.
Meanwhile, Clare County Council yesterday backed a proposal to have the Burren included as a World Her- itage Site. Currently, there are only two Irish heritage sites on the pres- tigious Unesco World Heritage List
A report by acting senior planner at Clare County Council, John Bradley, went before the council at yester- days meeting describing the Burren as having the requisite designations and potential to meet the stringent requirements of Unesco World Her- itage status.
Ireland’s current UNISCO sites and Bru na Boinne in Meath and Skellig Michael off the Kerry coast.