23 May 2021
By Elaine Murphy
elaine@TheCork.ie
Politics
Cork Greens have welcomed the allocation of €51,600 for biodiversity projects in Cork County and City as part of the Local Authority Biodiversity Grant Scheme. The Minister of State with responsibility for Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan TD, announced that all 31 Local Authorities have received funding under the scheme, with a total of €1.35 million made available in 2021.
Councillor Dan Boyle welcomed the investment in Cork City’s biodiversity especially with regard to the treatment and management of the invasive Japanese Knotweed species.
Biodiversity projects that have been allocated funding in Cork City include:
Biodiversity survey of Blarney Bog to add to the knowledge of this wetland habitat and to inform future management and conservation of this wetland area.
Japanese knotweed removal from the most affected public areas within Cork City boundaries. The project will promote native plant species to return to these public areas and manage the pathways to prevent the introduction and establishment of Japanese knotweed
into public areas.
Biodiversity projects that have been allocated funding in Cork County include:
The development of County Town Pollinator Plans in Cork County
Cork County Council, in partnership with the Bride Valley Farming with Nature Team plan to survey, map and treat invasive alien species along the Bride river valley.
Announcing the successful projects, Minister Noonan said: “There is good news for nature in every Local Authority in Ireland today! I’m thrilled to see so many excellent biodiversity projects receive funding under the Local Authority Biodiversity Grant Scheme, which I doubled funding for this year. Community-level action is so important, and the initiatives provided for through this grant demonstrate the scale and breadth of interest in biodiversity and the natural world across the country. I can’t wait to get out and visit them over the coming year.”
