Regardless on how they manipulate or change the plans the land at Bremore is now set for developements and if this is allowed the site cannot survive as it once was; a deeply special, spiritual and beautiful place connected to the very beginnings of us.
Behind this is the usual story of development and land speculation in Ireland. The planners say that a deepwater port is desperately needed to maintain and safeguard our economy and that the only place it can be built is at Bremore. The port at Dublin they say has reached its capacity and is no longer big enough. In tandem the Dublin Port Authority who own and runs Dublin Port are seeking planning permission to enlarged the port by filling in 54 acres of the bay along the coast of Clontarf. All this is know and in the news even if most people show little interest in it.
The Dublin Docklands Development Authority seem content to work against their duty and play a double game, they allow a process run which may one day close the Dublin Docks and turn it into a large developer led complex of apartments, shops and marinas. They often seem to want the Port out of the way. Up to last year the board included Sean Fitzpatrick, the disgraced head of Anglo Irish Bank, as one of its directors. Its new chairman/woman is Prof. Niamh Brennan, lesser known as the wife of former PD boss Michael McDowell. It was his party, The Progressive Democrat Party who drew up the plans and announced the proposal to move Dublin port to Bremore. She was placed in the job this year by her supposed ideological arch enemy, the green man; John Gormley.
Noel Dempsy has also made it clear that he, as Minister for Transport, will give the go ahead to what is planned at Bremore even before he has seen the plans, he agreed to make changes to the harbour Act that would allow Drogheda Port Company to proceed and he has been pushing it silently for years. With a cast like that it should come as no surprise that environmental and heritage destruction is again being planned and dressed up as progress.
However it must not be like this.
The huge oil terminal at Dublin Docks must be eventually moved, this has been planed for years and the old Whitty Oil Refinery site in Cork has been mooted as one place where it could be rebuilt. There is a deep water port there too and as all oil tankers come up from the south it would be a natural place to reposition and build an oil depot. If that were to be done it would free up enough place for the Dublin Docks to expand where it is and Bremore could be left to tourists, walkers, heritage lovers and nature.
Also some years back private developer/s bought a large piece of reclaimed land, circa 13.5 ha at Dublin Docklands and named it the East Point Business Park. Phase one of this development opened in 1996 but for some reason many of the units were left to lie empty. Today much of this site still stands empty. There is enough room there for expansion, it could be compulsory purchased if need be and thus the Dublin port enlarged without the destruction of Bremore. This though is not even mentioned. As to how or why this site was sold is not discussed. It was known that that the Port was running out of space but no one apparently came to the conclusion that this land might be needed.
The oil terminal cannot exist much longer in the middle of a city, its carries a huge pollution, explosion and fire risk but it now seems that if it is to be moved then it moves out to Bremore too.
All ships coming to Ireland from Europe, Asia and Africa, except the Scandinavian and German ones, come up from the south and so the building of a deep water port, if needed, should take place on the southern coast and/or on the west coast to facilitate the gigantic trade coming from the Americas. Again there are deep water ports all along the west coast, the deepest and largest being the one at Foynes near Limerick. This though is largely unused today and there are no plans to built it up.
It would make sense to move the oil depot and if need be the East Point Business Park out and away from the city, then build the extension of the port on the freed up lands there. These sites sit side by side and were once part of the same port land take.
Alternatively or in tandem many of the smaller ports along our coasts could be enlarged and have them specialize it different cargo's. Worldwide there is a move away from giant ports like the one planned at Bremore and to smaller specialized ones. The plans for Bremore again flies in the face of what we should be doing but the people doing it are the same people, names and faces behind the disaster we as tax payers are now slowly having to pay for.
Those who have bought the land at Bremore seem set to move on Bremore, it is a closed circle and one without debate. It is bald greed and ego driving an unwanted and unneeded development, the kind that has just destroyed our country and it beggars belief that is is to happen again. As at Tara so at Bremore too.
If they get to build on Bremore we will end up with another priceless part of our heritage gone, more of our land will go under cement, it will further pollute the east coast, bring further development and with it population growth and suburbanization right in perhaps to the Hill of Tara itself, our old soul and centre.
"Europe's first slum, a role that won't be hard, with a cast of crooks and tarts".
Philip Larkin. Going Going Gone.
They will in all probability end up infilling Dublin Bay at Clontarf too, and this land together with the old oil terminal and the East Point Business Park land will then be sold on to developers and a sea of ugly unwanted cement will appear where the Dublin Docks used to be.
Acitivy like this will be used to kick start the poisoned model of economics that has just failed and ensnared us, it will push us ever deeper into their perverse ideal of progress and if it goes wrong again then we will be called to pay for it.
But do you want this?
Do you want to pay for their plunder, mistakes and corruption, do you want to lose whats left of our once special magical heritage? Do you want to see whats left of our land, environment and ecology being raped and ruined while they grow get fat on the profits and plan the next assault?
If not, if you feel strongly about this then please get involved in Bremore now. Do not wait like we waited at Tara, do not wait until it is too late to stop them.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Bremore Today.
Today, the 31/05/2009 I visited Bremore. It was a beautiful morning, the sun danced on the sea, birds sang and a small black thing raced across the small path which leads down to the burial mounds with something in its mouth. It was a weasel I think, on its way into the safety of a hedge. A lark rose and sang its way up into the heavens and from a distance this old burial place looked as it had always did; until I got up close to the mounds.
On the latest Ordnance Survey Maps there are five mounds clearly shown, today I could see only four. Three of them have been recently mauled and disturbed by machinery, to the point where they are now imperiled. One large mound may survive as it is too big to drive a tractor on, the other three have been ploughed over and planted upon. Some of the surrounding kerb stones have been pulled loose and at least two of the mounds are only a thin shadow of what they recently were.
These mounds have been dated at six thousand years old, one more year of this, perhaps one more harvesting of the crop this year and what remains of them will sink back into the soil. It is blatant vandalism carried out perhaps to an order or a request.
These mounds are National Monuments, among the most important monuments we have in our land, they are legally protected, they should be fenced off, regularly checked by a heritage officer or parks warden and damage to them stopped or corrected. Any farmer treating them as they have just been treated should be charged with a serious crime but like so much in Ireland now political, heritage and environmental duty has gone missing.
A priceless piece of us lies wounded and soon the developers will be given the green light to move and finish off the job. They will call this progress.
The signs that were there last year, National Monument Signs, warning signs, tourist signs etc have all been removed. The Minister of the Environment has been notified about this, so too has the National Monuments Office but nothing has been done. It is obvious that no one came out to check the site, or its condition and I personally have the feeling that the site is being prepared for its final destruction.
On the latest Ordnance Survey Maps there are five mounds clearly shown, today I could see only four. Three of them have been recently mauled and disturbed by machinery, to the point where they are now imperiled. One large mound may survive as it is too big to drive a tractor on, the other three have been ploughed over and planted upon. Some of the surrounding kerb stones have been pulled loose and at least two of the mounds are only a thin shadow of what they recently were.
These mounds have been dated at six thousand years old, one more year of this, perhaps one more harvesting of the crop this year and what remains of them will sink back into the soil. It is blatant vandalism carried out perhaps to an order or a request.
These mounds are National Monuments, among the most important monuments we have in our land, they are legally protected, they should be fenced off, regularly checked by a heritage officer or parks warden and damage to them stopped or corrected. Any farmer treating them as they have just been treated should be charged with a serious crime but like so much in Ireland now political, heritage and environmental duty has gone missing.
A priceless piece of us lies wounded and soon the developers will be given the green light to move and finish off the job. They will call this progress.
The signs that were there last year, National Monument Signs, warning signs, tourist signs etc have all been removed. The Minister of the Environment has been notified about this, so too has the National Monuments Office but nothing has been done. It is obvious that no one came out to check the site, or its condition and I personally have the feeling that the site is being prepared for its final destruction.
Articles on Bremore.
Controversy over public consultation on port plans.
Controversy is still raging over the validity of the public consultation procedures in relation to proposals for the alterations of the harbour limits of Drogheda Port Company at the proposed new deep water port of Bremore.
The plans should have been freely available for public viewing at the front office of Drogheda Garda station for a period of 21 days, but the Drogheda Independent has been contacted by a number of people who said the gardaí were either unaware of what was being asked for, or people could only view the proposals in a private room and in the presence of several gardaí.
They were also not allowed to photocopy or photograph the plans.
When this reporter went to view the plans, there was initial confusion as to the whereabouts of the folder, and it was thought they had been sent back to get the time extended.
However, it transpired they had been moved to a different location within the station.
'It is outrageous that these plans were not in a library in Balbriggan, or somewhere like a planning office more accessible to the general public,' says Dr Mark Clinton, a Howth-based archaeological consultant for An Taisce.
' When you see the advertisements that were placed in the Drogheda Independent, you would not think there was any connection to Bremore as it just mentions 'alterations of the harbour limits of Drogheda Port Company'.
'However, this actually proposes to put a great big harbour in a beautiful part of north County Dublin, and I'm sure if people knew about it, they would be interested to see if it affects them.'
It took Dr Clinton three attempts to get to see the plans, and he says he wasn't personally intimidated by the surroundings of the garda station, but he has spoken to some who were.
'Asking for the Superintendent's office is a big deal to some people, and I can't see why they needed to be kept there,' says Dr Clinton.
'I actually think the gardaí have many more important things to be doing, and it is outrageous these proposals weren't on show in a library or other more public building.'
- Alison COMYN
From the Drogheda Independent. Thursday, September 24 2009.
Leading developer says Nama will be positive for economy.
ONE OF the State’s biggest property developers believes Nama will take over most of its assets, but that the process will benefit both it and the economy. The Government’s plan to recapitalise the banks hinges on the proposed National Asset Management Agency (Nama), which will take over up to €90 billion in property loans. Listed property investor Real Estate Opportunities (REO), whose biggest shareholder, the John Ronan and Richard Barrett-controlled Treasury Holdings, is Nama’s landlord, believes the agency will take over the loans it has from the banks. John Bruder, managing director of Treasury Ireland which is part of the Treasury Holdings group, told The Irish Times yesterday that the company has studied the draft Nama legislation. He said the agency could take over good and bad loans. “It’s our expectation that a lot, if not all, of our portfolio will end up being subsumed into Nama,” he said. Mr Bruder added that, unlike other players in the market, none of REO’s loans are distressed. The company owns a large number of commercial and retail properties, including the landmark Central Park complex close to Leopardstown in Dublin, Montevetro on Barrow Street in the city centre, and a range of others in the capital’s main business district. In Britain, it owns the flagship Battersea power station, which it is redeveloping as a new urban centre. REO yesterday reported that its Irish properties, including investment assets and those under development, were worth just over €1.3 billion at the end of June, an 8 per cent fall over the previous six months. Its British interests were worth £388 million, a decline of 14.5 per cent. Mr Bruder said that if loans related to part or all of its portfolio are taken over by Nama, it will simply mean that the company will be repaying the agency instead of the banks. If the Oireachtas passes the legislation on schedule, Nama will begin its work towards the end of the year on a phased basis, taking on the larger loans first. On that basis, REO expects to begin dealing with agency around December or January. Under the terms of the proposed legislation, Nama will assume the banks’ rights and obligations in relation to any loans it takes over. Mr Bruder added that the Nama process should be positive for both the company and the economy generally, as it will allow the banks to raise money that can then be loaned. Nama’s critics argue that it will result in the taxpayer taking on too much risk as the State will overpay for the loans.
This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times. 28/08/09
Port threatens an archaeological complex of passage tombs.
AN TAISCE has warned that the proposed deepwater port at Bremore, north Co Dublin, could threaten an archaeological complex of passage tombs even older than Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth in the Boyne Valley. The environmental trust was commenting yesterday on plans by Drogheda Port to extend its boundary southwards so as to incorporate Bremore for development of the deepwater port in partnership with Treasury Holdings. An Taisce said it had ascertained that the proposed alteration of the Drogheda Port Company’s area of control is to facilitate the construction of a new deepwater port at Bremore to cater for vessels up to 250 metres. Saying it was opposed to this development, the trust complained no environmental assessment of its effects has been made available, and thus there could be no proper public consultation, as required under EU law. It pointed out that the river Nanny estuary is an EU-designated nature conservation site – a special protected area under the birds directive and a candidate for special area of conservation under the habitats directive. The foreshore and associated sand dunes is home to many species of concern. According to a Foras Forbartha report (1972), the Helix Pisana is a “species that is only found on the Irish coast between south Co Louth and north Co Dublin”. An Taisce said the archaeological profile of the Bremore area was particularly significant, as it included the legally-protected Bremore Passage Tomb Cemetery as well as elements of the Gormanston Passage Tomb Cemetery. Archaeologist Dr Mark Clinton, chairman of An Taisce’s national monuments and antiquities committee, said one mound had an entrance orientation indicating the possibility that it was aligned with the summer solstice. “In this regard, and given their morphology and geographical location, there’s every possibility the builders were the near ancestors of those that built the nearby world-acclaimed tombs of Brú na Bóinne [the Boyne Valley tombs].” Dr Clinton said the two cemetery complexes proposed to be incorporated by Drogheda Port under the 2009 Harbours Act “must be considered within the greater context of other passage tombs nearby at Knowth, Dowth and Newgrange”. “Hence we believe it is far more appropriate that the World Heritage Site of Brú na Bóinne would be extended to include the Bremore-Gormanston complexes rather than their obliteration as a result of an ‘extension’ for ‘development’ of Drogheda Port.” An Taisce highlighted a potential loss of public amenities, noting that Gormanston lies at the southern end of a “renowned stretch of sandy beaches. Notice of the Bremore extension plan is available for public inspection only in the Superintendent’s office at Drogheda Garda Station. The deadline for submissions and objections is September 8th. All submissions should be sent to Garret Doocey, Maritime Transport Division, Department of Transport, Dublin 2; email garret.doocey@transport.ie.
FRANK McDONALD, Environment Editor.
This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times. September 2nd. 2009.
The next Tara/M3 spectacle.
The planned site of the new Drogheda/Dublin Port at Bremore could well be the next Tara/M3 spectacle. The site, which comprising of several hundred acres, contains the remnants of a number of passage tombs and practically every field, which the new Drogheda Port Company facility will be built on, contains early Neolithic archaeology. “The tombs at Bremore are of an earlier date than that of Newgrange and Fourknocks. They are very early Neolithic and this has been recorded before,” said local historian Brendan Matthews. “The tombs are only the start of the archaeology in the area. I walk the fields there regularly and I have collected bags of flint objects including scrapers and arrowheads.” An archaeological excavation undertaken in 1840 on a tomb at Knocknagin at the Delvin River uncovered a number of early Neolithic finds and stones around the tomb had no drawings engraved on them pointing to an earlier date than that of Newgrange. Finds in the area point to Bremore being one of the first ever sites of Neolithic settlement in Ireland.
The E300 million development was given the green light by the government after the Transport and Marine Minister Noel Dempsey stated that he intended to give permission to the Drogheda company.
Anthony Murphy of www. Mythicalireland.com said, “The remnants of the passage tombs at Bremore are Neolithic and are on the same timeline as Newgrange.” “These are no ordinary fields, it has been recorded that there is significant archaeology on the land.” The Drogheda Leader contacted the Drogheda Port Company but they were unavailable for comment at the time of print.
From The Drogheda Leader, November 21. 2008.
Pollution.
In a breefing issued on the 26 May and reported in the Irish Times on May 27, 2008, the EPA said that Fingal Co Council had the worst bathing standards of any Irish couny or local authority and more than half of its beaches failed to meet mandatory EU standards. These beaches include Balbriggan, Loughshinny and Portrane all neighbouring beaches of Breamore.
Irish Times. May 28th. 2009.
Speech.
Speaking at a recent meeting of the Balbriggan Historical Society, Professor George Eogan said the area on both sides of the Delvin River from Gormanston to Bremore is a large Megalithic cemetery dating from 3,500BC. He said this has been recorded, researched and written about for well over 100 years and added the mounds on this site are legally protected under the National Monuments Act of 1930. Prof Eogan believes that Bremore may have been the first point of entry for the settlements of what is now known as Fingal/East Meath and the Boyne Valley area.
He has written a detailed report on the history of the area and the historical value of the site at Bremore.
Local historian Brendan Matthews has also expressed his concerns about the development of a new port on such a historical site and raised the issue as far back as 2005.He said that in the immediate vicinity of the proposed deep-water port, there are the remains of at least five megalithic tombs or burial chambers, while to the north of Bremore there are the remains of at least another six tombs scattered over a wide area from Knocknagin to Lowther Lodge.
Responding to the professors report and lecture, CEO of Drogheda Port, Paul Fleming said they recognise that there is archaeology at Bremore and will deal with it in an upfront and professional manner. He said the archaeology of the site was just one element in what was a complicated and multi-faceted site selection process which took two years to complete.
From the Drogheda Independent. Wednesday, December 05 2007.
Drogheda Port Company and Treasury Holdings are planning a 300 million world class port facility, which is expected to be operational by 2012. According to local historian, Paddy Boyle, the site is highly significant and an extraordinary example of megalithic tombs which could be of enormous value, both in terms of archaeology and tourism. If they were of the mind to develop its archaeological sites in the future, it would probably be the oldest in the county and on a par with Newgrange and Loughcrew. The artists impression of the new port does'nt show the tomb complex being retained in any way. In fact the roll-on roll-off terminal is positioned exactly where the tomb complex is located.
From The Fingal Independent, 2008.
Public statement on the Proposed Port at Bremore, County Dublin. 31 March 2007.
The proposed location is an area with a rich, recorded and designated prehistoric and historic archaeological heritage.The most well known element is the passage tomb cemetery on Bremore Head which extends along the coastline to include outliers at Gormanston. The Bremore tombs are designated National Monuments, with the attendant significance and protections this implies. Acknowledged experts in the archaeology of prehistoric Ireland suggest that this cemetery group is comparable to the complexes at the Boyne Valley and Lough Crew in County Meath as well as Carrowmore and Carrowkeel in County Sligo. Archaeological survey in the area has also recorded evidence for settlement and occupation in the vicinity of the tombs from the Neolithic (4000-2400BC) and Bronze Age (2400-500BC). At this juncture, IAI urges all interested parties within the profession to engage in open-handed and informative dialogue on the matter . Teresa Bolger. Public Relations Officer. Institute of Archaeologists of Ireland, 2007.
Dublin Bay - Proposed 52 acre infill. Sunday, 15 June 2008.Statement from Sean 'Dublin Bay' Loftus, B.L. and Finian McGrath T.D. (Ind.) in reply to statement from Enda Connellon, CEO of Dublin Port Company, launching the 2005 annual report of Dublin Port (August 15th 2006) (Re proposed 52 acre infill of Dublin Bay)Mr Connellan CEO Dublin Port Company, stated on August 15th that the Port Company intends to proceed with a controversial plan to reclaim 21 hectares (52 acres) of land opposite the sea front at Clontarf as the port needs to urgently address operational capacity issues to serve the Irish economy. "This amounts to environmental blackmail. Dublin Baywatch has proved that if the Port was properly managed, there would be need to reclaim this land. Press Release. Drogheda Port Company and Castlemarket Holdings. 15 January 2008. The joint venture between Drogheda Port Company and Castle Market Holdings Ltd, announces today that it will seek to develop a Port Master Plan with Hutchison Westports Ltd for the new €300 million deepwater port at Bremore in north Co Dublin. The signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Bremore Ireland Port Ltd and Hutchison Westports Ltd paves the way for the next phase in the development of the deepest port on the east coast of Ireland. Bremore Ireland Port hopes to be in a position to submit a full planning permission application in the next 12 months. The new deepwater port will provide additional choice to Ireland importers and exporters, and accommodate new short sea shipping services to the United Kingdom, Europe, Scandanavia and the Baltic States. Bremore Port will be designed and operated to provide the highest environmental standards and respect for the local community. It is anticipated that a diverse business district will be created around the port bringing widescale economic benefits to the Bremore/Balbriggan area and presenting lifestyle opportunities for local people to work in their local area. The project is proposed in three phases with Phase 1, subject to detailed design, potentiallycatering for up to 10 million tonnes of freight including 350,000 TEU Lo-Lo units, 409,000 Ro-Ro units and 1 million tonnes of general and bulk cargoes. The first phase of development will provide circa 500mtrs of linear quay for container and general cargo handling, two Ro-Ro and one high speed ferry berth for road freight, car and foot passenger traffic. The depth alongside will be in the order of 10.5m below CD, with a potential for future deepening to 12.0m.The port will be designed and operated to provide the highest environmental standards and respect for the local community. A diverse business district will be created around the port bringing wide economic benefits to the Bremore-Balbriggan area and presenting lifestyle opportunities for local people to work locally. Bremore Ireland Port Ltd is a joint venture partnership between Drogheda Port Company and Castle Market Holdings Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Real Estate Opportunities Limited. REO business in Ireland is managed by Treasury Holdings. HPH is the world leading port investor, developer and operator with interests in a total of 292 berths in 46 ports, spanning 23 countries throughout Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and the Americas.
Paul Fleming, CEO Drogheda Port Company commented: We are delighted to welcome Hutchison Westports Ltd to the Bremore team. Their port planning and operational experience will be a major asset to the development of Bremore Ireland Port.John Bruder, managing director of Treasury Holdings commented: Bremore Port is one of the most exciting commercial developments in Ireland at present and we are delighted that a truly world-class international partner in Hutchison Westports is now onboard.
Prof Eogan who believes that Bremore may have been the first point of entry for the settlements of what is now known as Fingal/East Meath and the Boyne Valley area has written a detailed report on the history of the area and the historical value of the site at Bremore.
A survey of the passage tombs at Bremore was published by Etienne Rynne (Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries, 1960) and recent publications in Archaeology Ireland (Cooney, 2008; Condit, Moore and Brady, 2008) have stressed the significant and integrated nature of the prehistoric and historic archaeological remains in the area.
Archaeological survey in the area has also recorded evidence for settlement and occupation in the vicinity of the tombs from the Neolithic (4000-2400BC) and Bronze Age (2400-500BC).
Teresa Bolger. Public Relations Officer. Institute of Archaeologists of Ireland, 2007.
Ireland’s Environmental Record.
Despite having just 1 per cent of the European Union’s population, Ireland accounts for 6 per cent of all EU environmental infringement cases being investigated by the European Commission, according to Proinsias De Rossa, Labour MEP for Dublin. He said yesterday that Ireland had the third highest number of infringements under investigation (54) after Spain (96) and Italy (90). Countries with fewer cases included Britain (52), France (51) and Germany (43), all with 10 times Ireland’s population.Launching a detailed research paper No Time to Waste , which documents Ireland’s non-compliance, he warned that Ireland’s failure to implement EU environmental legislation could prove an impediment to a sustainable economic recovery.
Mr De Rossa said that “conservative political forces” in Ireland viewed environmental protection as one of the negative “obligations” of EU membership – “measures that should be opposed and, when that proves futile, to be delayed for as long as possible”.
Frank Mc Donald, Environment Editor, Irish Times, Tuesday, June 2, 2009.
http://www.tara-foundation.org/Bremore-Port.phpmail@tara-foundation.org.
Controversy is still raging over the validity of the public consultation procedures in relation to proposals for the alterations of the harbour limits of Drogheda Port Company at the proposed new deep water port of Bremore.
The plans should have been freely available for public viewing at the front office of Drogheda Garda station for a period of 21 days, but the Drogheda Independent has been contacted by a number of people who said the gardaí were either unaware of what was being asked for, or people could only view the proposals in a private room and in the presence of several gardaí.
They were also not allowed to photocopy or photograph the plans.
When this reporter went to view the plans, there was initial confusion as to the whereabouts of the folder, and it was thought they had been sent back to get the time extended.
However, it transpired they had been moved to a different location within the station.
'It is outrageous that these plans were not in a library in Balbriggan, or somewhere like a planning office more accessible to the general public,' says Dr Mark Clinton, a Howth-based archaeological consultant for An Taisce.
' When you see the advertisements that were placed in the Drogheda Independent, you would not think there was any connection to Bremore as it just mentions 'alterations of the harbour limits of Drogheda Port Company'.
'However, this actually proposes to put a great big harbour in a beautiful part of north County Dublin, and I'm sure if people knew about it, they would be interested to see if it affects them.'
It took Dr Clinton three attempts to get to see the plans, and he says he wasn't personally intimidated by the surroundings of the garda station, but he has spoken to some who were.
'Asking for the Superintendent's office is a big deal to some people, and I can't see why they needed to be kept there,' says Dr Clinton.
'I actually think the gardaí have many more important things to be doing, and it is outrageous these proposals weren't on show in a library or other more public building.'
- Alison COMYN
From the Drogheda Independent. Thursday, September 24 2009.
Leading developer says Nama will be positive for economy.
ONE OF the State’s biggest property developers believes Nama will take over most of its assets, but that the process will benefit both it and the economy. The Government’s plan to recapitalise the banks hinges on the proposed National Asset Management Agency (Nama), which will take over up to €90 billion in property loans. Listed property investor Real Estate Opportunities (REO), whose biggest shareholder, the John Ronan and Richard Barrett-controlled Treasury Holdings, is Nama’s landlord, believes the agency will take over the loans it has from the banks. John Bruder, managing director of Treasury Ireland which is part of the Treasury Holdings group, told The Irish Times yesterday that the company has studied the draft Nama legislation. He said the agency could take over good and bad loans. “It’s our expectation that a lot, if not all, of our portfolio will end up being subsumed into Nama,” he said. Mr Bruder added that, unlike other players in the market, none of REO’s loans are distressed. The company owns a large number of commercial and retail properties, including the landmark Central Park complex close to Leopardstown in Dublin, Montevetro on Barrow Street in the city centre, and a range of others in the capital’s main business district. In Britain, it owns the flagship Battersea power station, which it is redeveloping as a new urban centre. REO yesterday reported that its Irish properties, including investment assets and those under development, were worth just over €1.3 billion at the end of June, an 8 per cent fall over the previous six months. Its British interests were worth £388 million, a decline of 14.5 per cent. Mr Bruder said that if loans related to part or all of its portfolio are taken over by Nama, it will simply mean that the company will be repaying the agency instead of the banks. If the Oireachtas passes the legislation on schedule, Nama will begin its work towards the end of the year on a phased basis, taking on the larger loans first. On that basis, REO expects to begin dealing with agency around December or January. Under the terms of the proposed legislation, Nama will assume the banks’ rights and obligations in relation to any loans it takes over. Mr Bruder added that the Nama process should be positive for both the company and the economy generally, as it will allow the banks to raise money that can then be loaned. Nama’s critics argue that it will result in the taxpayer taking on too much risk as the State will overpay for the loans.
This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times. 28/08/09
Port threatens an archaeological complex of passage tombs.
AN TAISCE has warned that the proposed deepwater port at Bremore, north Co Dublin, could threaten an archaeological complex of passage tombs even older than Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth in the Boyne Valley. The environmental trust was commenting yesterday on plans by Drogheda Port to extend its boundary southwards so as to incorporate Bremore for development of the deepwater port in partnership with Treasury Holdings. An Taisce said it had ascertained that the proposed alteration of the Drogheda Port Company’s area of control is to facilitate the construction of a new deepwater port at Bremore to cater for vessels up to 250 metres. Saying it was opposed to this development, the trust complained no environmental assessment of its effects has been made available, and thus there could be no proper public consultation, as required under EU law. It pointed out that the river Nanny estuary is an EU-designated nature conservation site – a special protected area under the birds directive and a candidate for special area of conservation under the habitats directive. The foreshore and associated sand dunes is home to many species of concern. According to a Foras Forbartha report (1972), the Helix Pisana is a “species that is only found on the Irish coast between south Co Louth and north Co Dublin”. An Taisce said the archaeological profile of the Bremore area was particularly significant, as it included the legally-protected Bremore Passage Tomb Cemetery as well as elements of the Gormanston Passage Tomb Cemetery. Archaeologist Dr Mark Clinton, chairman of An Taisce’s national monuments and antiquities committee, said one mound had an entrance orientation indicating the possibility that it was aligned with the summer solstice. “In this regard, and given their morphology and geographical location, there’s every possibility the builders were the near ancestors of those that built the nearby world-acclaimed tombs of Brú na Bóinne [the Boyne Valley tombs].” Dr Clinton said the two cemetery complexes proposed to be incorporated by Drogheda Port under the 2009 Harbours Act “must be considered within the greater context of other passage tombs nearby at Knowth, Dowth and Newgrange”. “Hence we believe it is far more appropriate that the World Heritage Site of Brú na Bóinne would be extended to include the Bremore-Gormanston complexes rather than their obliteration as a result of an ‘extension’ for ‘development’ of Drogheda Port.” An Taisce highlighted a potential loss of public amenities, noting that Gormanston lies at the southern end of a “renowned stretch of sandy beaches. Notice of the Bremore extension plan is available for public inspection only in the Superintendent’s office at Drogheda Garda Station. The deadline for submissions and objections is September 8th. All submissions should be sent to Garret Doocey, Maritime Transport Division, Department of Transport, Dublin 2; email garret.doocey@transport.ie.
FRANK McDONALD, Environment Editor.
This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times. September 2nd. 2009.
The next Tara/M3 spectacle.
The planned site of the new Drogheda/Dublin Port at Bremore could well be the next Tara/M3 spectacle. The site, which comprising of several hundred acres, contains the remnants of a number of passage tombs and practically every field, which the new Drogheda Port Company facility will be built on, contains early Neolithic archaeology. “The tombs at Bremore are of an earlier date than that of Newgrange and Fourknocks. They are very early Neolithic and this has been recorded before,” said local historian Brendan Matthews. “The tombs are only the start of the archaeology in the area. I walk the fields there regularly and I have collected bags of flint objects including scrapers and arrowheads.” An archaeological excavation undertaken in 1840 on a tomb at Knocknagin at the Delvin River uncovered a number of early Neolithic finds and stones around the tomb had no drawings engraved on them pointing to an earlier date than that of Newgrange. Finds in the area point to Bremore being one of the first ever sites of Neolithic settlement in Ireland.
The E300 million development was given the green light by the government after the Transport and Marine Minister Noel Dempsey stated that he intended to give permission to the Drogheda company.
Anthony Murphy of www. Mythicalireland.com said, “The remnants of the passage tombs at Bremore are Neolithic and are on the same timeline as Newgrange.” “These are no ordinary fields, it has been recorded that there is significant archaeology on the land.” The Drogheda Leader contacted the Drogheda Port Company but they were unavailable for comment at the time of print.
From The Drogheda Leader, November 21. 2008.
Pollution.
In a breefing issued on the 26 May and reported in the Irish Times on May 27, 2008, the EPA said that Fingal Co Council had the worst bathing standards of any Irish couny or local authority and more than half of its beaches failed to meet mandatory EU standards. These beaches include Balbriggan, Loughshinny and Portrane all neighbouring beaches of Breamore.
Irish Times. May 28th. 2009.
Speech.
Speaking at a recent meeting of the Balbriggan Historical Society, Professor George Eogan said the area on both sides of the Delvin River from Gormanston to Bremore is a large Megalithic cemetery dating from 3,500BC. He said this has been recorded, researched and written about for well over 100 years and added the mounds on this site are legally protected under the National Monuments Act of 1930. Prof Eogan believes that Bremore may have been the first point of entry for the settlements of what is now known as Fingal/East Meath and the Boyne Valley area.
He has written a detailed report on the history of the area and the historical value of the site at Bremore.
Local historian Brendan Matthews has also expressed his concerns about the development of a new port on such a historical site and raised the issue as far back as 2005.He said that in the immediate vicinity of the proposed deep-water port, there are the remains of at least five megalithic tombs or burial chambers, while to the north of Bremore there are the remains of at least another six tombs scattered over a wide area from Knocknagin to Lowther Lodge.
Responding to the professors report and lecture, CEO of Drogheda Port, Paul Fleming said they recognise that there is archaeology at Bremore and will deal with it in an upfront and professional manner. He said the archaeology of the site was just one element in what was a complicated and multi-faceted site selection process which took two years to complete.
From the Drogheda Independent. Wednesday, December 05 2007.
Drogheda Port Company and Treasury Holdings are planning a 300 million world class port facility, which is expected to be operational by 2012. According to local historian, Paddy Boyle, the site is highly significant and an extraordinary example of megalithic tombs which could be of enormous value, both in terms of archaeology and tourism. If they were of the mind to develop its archaeological sites in the future, it would probably be the oldest in the county and on a par with Newgrange and Loughcrew. The artists impression of the new port does'nt show the tomb complex being retained in any way. In fact the roll-on roll-off terminal is positioned exactly where the tomb complex is located.
From The Fingal Independent, 2008.
Public statement on the Proposed Port at Bremore, County Dublin. 31 March 2007.
The proposed location is an area with a rich, recorded and designated prehistoric and historic archaeological heritage.The most well known element is the passage tomb cemetery on Bremore Head which extends along the coastline to include outliers at Gormanston. The Bremore tombs are designated National Monuments, with the attendant significance and protections this implies. Acknowledged experts in the archaeology of prehistoric Ireland suggest that this cemetery group is comparable to the complexes at the Boyne Valley and Lough Crew in County Meath as well as Carrowmore and Carrowkeel in County Sligo. Archaeological survey in the area has also recorded evidence for settlement and occupation in the vicinity of the tombs from the Neolithic (4000-2400BC) and Bronze Age (2400-500BC). At this juncture, IAI urges all interested parties within the profession to engage in open-handed and informative dialogue on the matter . Teresa Bolger. Public Relations Officer. Institute of Archaeologists of Ireland, 2007.
Dublin Bay - Proposed 52 acre infill. Sunday, 15 June 2008.Statement from Sean 'Dublin Bay' Loftus, B.L. and Finian McGrath T.D. (Ind.) in reply to statement from Enda Connellon, CEO of Dublin Port Company, launching the 2005 annual report of Dublin Port (August 15th 2006) (Re proposed 52 acre infill of Dublin Bay)Mr Connellan CEO Dublin Port Company, stated on August 15th that the Port Company intends to proceed with a controversial plan to reclaim 21 hectares (52 acres) of land opposite the sea front at Clontarf as the port needs to urgently address operational capacity issues to serve the Irish economy. "This amounts to environmental blackmail. Dublin Baywatch has proved that if the Port was properly managed, there would be need to reclaim this land. Press Release. Drogheda Port Company and Castlemarket Holdings. 15 January 2008. The joint venture between Drogheda Port Company and Castle Market Holdings Ltd, announces today that it will seek to develop a Port Master Plan with Hutchison Westports Ltd for the new €300 million deepwater port at Bremore in north Co Dublin. The signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Bremore Ireland Port Ltd and Hutchison Westports Ltd paves the way for the next phase in the development of the deepest port on the east coast of Ireland. Bremore Ireland Port hopes to be in a position to submit a full planning permission application in the next 12 months. The new deepwater port will provide additional choice to Ireland importers and exporters, and accommodate new short sea shipping services to the United Kingdom, Europe, Scandanavia and the Baltic States. Bremore Port will be designed and operated to provide the highest environmental standards and respect for the local community. It is anticipated that a diverse business district will be created around the port bringing widescale economic benefits to the Bremore/Balbriggan area and presenting lifestyle opportunities for local people to work in their local area. The project is proposed in three phases with Phase 1, subject to detailed design, potentiallycatering for up to 10 million tonnes of freight including 350,000 TEU Lo-Lo units, 409,000 Ro-Ro units and 1 million tonnes of general and bulk cargoes. The first phase of development will provide circa 500mtrs of linear quay for container and general cargo handling, two Ro-Ro and one high speed ferry berth for road freight, car and foot passenger traffic. The depth alongside will be in the order of 10.5m below CD, with a potential for future deepening to 12.0m.The port will be designed and operated to provide the highest environmental standards and respect for the local community. A diverse business district will be created around the port bringing wide economic benefits to the Bremore-Balbriggan area and presenting lifestyle opportunities for local people to work locally. Bremore Ireland Port Ltd is a joint venture partnership between Drogheda Port Company and Castle Market Holdings Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Real Estate Opportunities Limited. REO business in Ireland is managed by Treasury Holdings. HPH is the world leading port investor, developer and operator with interests in a total of 292 berths in 46 ports, spanning 23 countries throughout Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and the Americas.
Paul Fleming, CEO Drogheda Port Company commented: We are delighted to welcome Hutchison Westports Ltd to the Bremore team. Their port planning and operational experience will be a major asset to the development of Bremore Ireland Port.John Bruder, managing director of Treasury Holdings commented: Bremore Port is one of the most exciting commercial developments in Ireland at present and we are delighted that a truly world-class international partner in Hutchison Westports is now onboard.
Prof Eogan who believes that Bremore may have been the first point of entry for the settlements of what is now known as Fingal/East Meath and the Boyne Valley area has written a detailed report on the history of the area and the historical value of the site at Bremore.
A survey of the passage tombs at Bremore was published by Etienne Rynne (Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries, 1960) and recent publications in Archaeology Ireland (Cooney, 2008; Condit, Moore and Brady, 2008) have stressed the significant and integrated nature of the prehistoric and historic archaeological remains in the area.
Archaeological survey in the area has also recorded evidence for settlement and occupation in the vicinity of the tombs from the Neolithic (4000-2400BC) and Bronze Age (2400-500BC).
Teresa Bolger. Public Relations Officer. Institute of Archaeologists of Ireland, 2007.
Ireland’s Environmental Record.
Despite having just 1 per cent of the European Union’s population, Ireland accounts for 6 per cent of all EU environmental infringement cases being investigated by the European Commission, according to Proinsias De Rossa, Labour MEP for Dublin. He said yesterday that Ireland had the third highest number of infringements under investigation (54) after Spain (96) and Italy (90). Countries with fewer cases included Britain (52), France (51) and Germany (43), all with 10 times Ireland’s population.Launching a detailed research paper No Time to Waste , which documents Ireland’s non-compliance, he warned that Ireland’s failure to implement EU environmental legislation could prove an impediment to a sustainable economic recovery.
Mr De Rossa said that “conservative political forces” in Ireland viewed environmental protection as one of the negative “obligations” of EU membership – “measures that should be opposed and, when that proves futile, to be delayed for as long as possible”.
Frank Mc Donald, Environment Editor, Irish Times, Tuesday, June 2, 2009.
http://www.tara-foundation.org/Bremore-Port.phpmail@tara-foundation.org.
Jobs.
But what about Jobs?
Promising and creating jobs is the attraction which allows all developments be sold to local people. However there is a finite number of jobs that can be provided in ports in Ireland.
Jobs created in a Bremore port will take from the jobs now in place in Dublin Port. If the port in Bremore proves to be more efficient and less prone to union dominance, as it will, then there is likely to be a reduction in the sum total of jobs available.
In the construction phase there will be work but using the present economic model the employment mix will tend to be 80% unskilled non nationals and about 20% nationals.
To wreck an environmental and heritage asset like Bremore for these job numbers would be a step backwards.
Ireland likes to think short term, thats why we stumble from problem to problem but we must learn to calculate our actions long term, what effect they will have on our land, waters and future populations and not what pockets the development will fill in the short term.
“A fool thinks in minutes but an intelligent man must learn to think in centuries”.
Bertrand Russel. Two times Nobel prize winner.
The burial tombs at Bremore have withstood not just centuries but millenna, they seen us find our feet, suffer, laugh, believe in Cosmic law and then atrophy down to famine and foreign dominance. Are they to watch us destroy them now? Is that what our evolution was for?
The 10 State-owned port companies are in Dublin, Cork, Drogheda, Dundalk, Dún Laoghaire, Shannon/Foynes, Galway, New Ross, Waterford and Wicklow.
Going, going...
Promising and creating jobs is the attraction which allows all developments be sold to local people. However there is a finite number of jobs that can be provided in ports in Ireland.
Jobs created in a Bremore port will take from the jobs now in place in Dublin Port. If the port in Bremore proves to be more efficient and less prone to union dominance, as it will, then there is likely to be a reduction in the sum total of jobs available.
In the construction phase there will be work but using the present economic model the employment mix will tend to be 80% unskilled non nationals and about 20% nationals.
To wreck an environmental and heritage asset like Bremore for these job numbers would be a step backwards.
Ireland likes to think short term, thats why we stumble from problem to problem but we must learn to calculate our actions long term, what effect they will have on our land, waters and future populations and not what pockets the development will fill in the short term.
“A fool thinks in minutes but an intelligent man must learn to think in centuries”.
Bertrand Russel. Two times Nobel prize winner.
The burial tombs at Bremore have withstood not just centuries but millenna, they seen us find our feet, suffer, laugh, believe in Cosmic law and then atrophy down to famine and foreign dominance. Are they to watch us destroy them now? Is that what our evolution was for?
The 10 State-owned port companies are in Dublin, Cork, Drogheda, Dundalk, Dún Laoghaire, Shannon/Foynes, Galway, New Ross, Waterford and Wicklow.
Going, going...
Imagine.
Imagine if we had politicians who would buy Bremore, all the land now bought for development and turn it into a heritage park. Plant trees, reconstruct the mounds, put in paths and seats by the sea.
Imagine then advertising this as one of the oldest heritage sites in Europe. Would it attract good paying tourists, into good Bed And Breakfasts, imagine training our young in craft industries, sustainable tourism, imagine being a leader instead of a beggar nation?
Imagine valuing the past instead of plundering it, the present and the future.
Imagine a bright future!!!
Imagine telling our children that they have a future. Go to Bremore and imagine...
Imagine then advertising this as one of the oldest heritage sites in Europe. Would it attract good paying tourists, into good Bed And Breakfasts, imagine training our young in craft industries, sustainable tourism, imagine being a leader instead of a beggar nation?
Imagine valuing the past instead of plundering it, the present and the future.
Imagine a bright future!!!
Imagine telling our children that they have a future. Go to Bremore and imagine...
The politics of Destruction
If what is happening at Bremore concerns you then please become active now.Haunt your politicians, all of them, now.
Mail the media, mail your friends, let everyone know what is happening because it is happening all across our land.
Our greatest asset, a once beautiful green and mystical land is being reduced to a litter strewn suburbia.
Our woods and wildlife are being decimated, wild places, hedges and history are being removed to make way for an economy based only on ego and greed. 60% of our drinking water is polluted and our heritage is being bulldozed for private gain.
We are slowly being destroyed.
The politics of destruction so evident now at Bremore must be stopped.
Do not wait like at Tara, until it was too late.
Face down the destroyers now.
Contact the People responsible:
taoiseach@taoiseach.gov.ie, Minister@transport.ie,
minister@environ.ie, nationalmonuments@environ.ie, minister@agriculture.gov.ie,
Make contact with European Leaders and European people now. Let them know what the filthy men of Europe are again up to, make them known in Europe.
http://www.petitiononline.com/taraeire/petition.html
Please sign this Petition and pass it on.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)