28 HECTARES OF GRASSLAND HABITAT TO BE PAVED OVER
Though the
towpath is only around 4 metres wide the area of grassland along the entire
length of the river amounts to 44 hectares or 109 acres. The towpath traverses
many diverse habitats. It’s not just a wetland habitat. It borders broadleaf
woodland, open grassland, farmland, fenland and hedgerows and much of the path
is an example of unimproved grassland that is rich in natural flowers and wild
grasses.
Waterways Ireland is proposing to construct a 2.5m wide path along the
entire 115km length of the river. That is the same as paving over 71 acres or 28 hectares (13 in Carlow) of natural grassland
(287,500sq m) – an area 3 times the size of St. Stephen’s Green in Dublin.
TONS OF RIVERBANK TO BE REMOVED
Excavating a path 2.5m wide and 300mm deep along the length of the river, as
proposed by Waterways Ireland in their submission documentation, will entail
removing around 177,639 tons of spoil
containing hundreds of thousands of native wildflowers, grasses and insect
colonies.
In County Carlow the proposed 52km long path
will result in 92,372 tons of earth, grass and flowers being removed from the
river bank and the equivalent amount of hard core being transported in. This
movement of material in and out will require 5,773 distinct truckloads in Carlow
alone. Where is the council proposing to dump the 92,372 tons of spoil?
This
development is in contravention of the EU Green Infrastructure Strategy as it
removes natural green infrastructure and replaces it with built infrastructure.
The environmental impact on the wildlife and plant life along the river,
especially in the rural 18km long section between Goresbridge, Ballyteigelea,
Graiguenamanagh and St. Mullins, of having trucks, tractors, dumpers, JCB’s and
rollers travelling along the towpath will be catastrophic and risks rendering
this beautiful natural habitat as lifeless as much of the farmland across the
county. Destroying and degrading this natural habitat by digging it up
and
replacing it with a hard core path with a top layer of crushed limestone is
environmental vandalism.
DAMAGE TO THE AREA BY CONSTRUCTION VEHICLES
Removing 177,639 tons of riverbank equates to 5,551 truckloads of spoil going
out – if Waterways Ireland uses large 32ton, 4 axle rigid trucks, more if they
use smaller trucks – and another 5,551 truckloads containing hard core coming
in. That’s around 11,100 trucks driving onto or near the banks of the river,
right along the length of the river Barrow. Many areas of the walk are not
easily accessible for trucks so dumpers or tractor and trailer will have to
transport the spoil or hard core from one location to another further disturbing
and damaging the natural habitat.
Waterways Ireland estimates
they will complete the job in 15 months. Working a nine hour day, six days a
week for 15 months, that’s 3 trucks coming and going per hour. The Waterways
Ireland documentation shows a lot of pretty pictures of the finished path but
what about the habitat damage that will be done from all of the dirt, dust and
debris that will be created and possibly spilt into the river during the
construction phase and where will the tons of crushed stone be stored until
used. Based on the volume of trucks alone this development should not be allowed
to go ahead.
TYPE OF PATH BEING
PROPOSED IS TOTALLY UNSUITABLE FOR RIVER BARROW
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The
existing towpath needs to be repaired periodically, especially to correct
erosion caused by flooding (see photo), but it has been in existence for over
200 years and should be there for at least another 200 years. Waterways Ireland
is proposing 4 different types of surface finish to the paths from Lowtown in
Kildare to St. Mullin’s in Carlow. The proposed construction of an unbound path
of compacted stone and dust (Type A) for the rural areas along the river Barrow
is not a satisfactory surface because according to a technical report on
constructing paths and cycle ways issued by Sustrans (a UK based charity
specialising in delivering walking and cycling infrastructure and travel
behaviour change projects) this type of path has a life span of only 12 years
and then requires thorough repair/resurfacing due to wear, ponding, pothole
development and growing vegetation. While it is suitable for lightly trafficked,
environmentally sensitive areas it is not suitable in areas where erosion is
likely to take place; areas where difficult drainage or water is present or
where heavy traffic or equestrians use the path. The TII Publication
DN-GEO-03047 referenced by Waterways Ireland in their submission makes no
reference to the life span of an unbound path of compacted stone and dust or
that they require proportionally more repair and maintenance; but the report
titled ‘Technical Information Note No. 8 – Cycle Path Surface Options’ issued by
Sustrans clearly lists this information and goes so far as to say that over the
past 15-20 years many off-road paths surfaced by them using unbound limestone
dust have suffered erosion, rutting, ponding and other damage making them
unattractive and unusable especially in wet weather conditions.
COST OF MAINTAINING ‘TYPE A’ PATH IS TOTALLY UNSUSTAINABLE FOR COUNCILS
Let’s
assume that the unbounded compacted stone path being proposed is suitable for
the Barrow. According to Sustrans, the UK based charity, in their ‘Technical
Information Note No. 8 – Cycle Path Surface Options’ the cost (2012 prices) of
repairing and/or resurfacing the ‘Type A – Compacted Stone and Dust (unbound)’
path will be in the region of €18 per square metre. Annual maintenance costs are
higher than for bound surfaces at around €2 per square metre per year. Ignoring
the initial capital cost outlay of making the cycle path the estimated cost of
repairing, resurfacing and maintaining each square metre of this cycle path over
a 50 year life-cycle will be:
Repair/Resurface costs after 12, 25 & 37 years
ð
€
54
Annual maintenance (50 yrs x €2)
ð €100
TOTAL COST:
€154 per square metre.
According to Waterways Ireland 84.8% or 97km of the cycle path will be
constructed of ‘Type A - compacted stone and dust (unbound). The cost of
maintaining and repairing this 97km length of path over the next 50 years works
out at a whopping
€37,345,000. (97,000m x 2.5m x €154)
That’s an annual maintenance cost of €746,900 between the three councils.
Assuming that each council is responsible for the maintenance of their own
section of the walk then as Carlow possesses 45% of the trail the council will
have to pay 45% of €746,900 or
€336,105 annually towards the upkeep of this path.
Even if we halve the estimated cost of routine maintenance and repairs it will
still leave Carlow County Council having to find
€168,052.50
every year for the next 50 years.
This figure could increase considerably if the
path wears at a faster rate, possibly needing a complete rebuild after a shorter
period. Has the council factored this cost into their annual expenditure?
PATH NOT SUSTAINABLE FOR RECREATIONAL TRAILS
The National Trails
Office Guide to Planning and Developing Recreational Trails in Ireland indicates
that a sustainable trail is required “to be valued and supported by the local
communities”. The Save the Barrow Line petition to save the grassy sod surface
has approximately four thousand signatures proving that the Blueway proposals
are not valued. In addition the results of the WI survey carried out to coincide
with their public information sessions showed that 84% of respondents felt that
the proposal will have “no positive contribution to community life, jobs, local
groups or businesses” (Waterways Ireland has omitted this detail from their
planning application – see section 6.3 of their “Supporting Information
document.)
Furthermore, the
National Trails Office states that “sustainable management (for trails) is
defined as - meeting the needs of today without negatively impacting on future
generations’ right to enjoy the same.” The Barrow Blueway will negatively impact
on future generations: it is unmaintainable, situated as it is on the bank of a
river which floods almost every year. Indeed the Irish Trails guidelines are
explicit in this regard “Flash Flooding Areas that are subject to occasional or
seasonal flooding should be avoided.”
THE COMMA BUTTERFLY
There is
no word on the Comma butterfly (Polygonia
c-album) in the Waterways Ireland environmental impact document. The Marsh
Fritillary is mentioned because it is protected but this butterfly is not found
anywhere along the Barrow but the Comma is and the area between Ballyteigelea
and Clashcanny
is one of
the
best
breeding sites of the rare Comma butterfly in the country. The Comma butterfly
(see photo) is a new resident in Ireland and is not mentioned on any lists as it
only appeared on Irish shores about 8-10 years ago, initially in coastal parts
of Co. Wexford. Since then it has been moving slowly northward and this location
in Carlow is one of the best in the country and butterfly enthusiasts from all
over the country and Northern Ireland visit the area in the hope of seeing one.
The main breeding location is close to the towpath between Borris Lock and
Ballinagrane Lock after the Ballytiglea Bridge. The Comma breeds in open
woodland and the margins of fields and hedgerows – the exact habitat offered by
the towpath and the surrounding area. It uses Nettles (Urtica dioica),
Currants (Ribes spp.), Hop (Humulus lupulus) and Willows (Salix
spp.) as the host plants for its larvae, many of which are growing along
the towpath and in the sunny clearings of the broadleaf woodland beside the
towpath. Carrying out this path construction work risks wiping out the breeding
habitat of this butterfly that has only just established a foothold in Ireland.