Mr. Ian Lumley:

That is done by the cultural heritage section of UNESCO's headquarters in Paris. There is a unit in Paris that has oversight of world heritage sites in Europe, although I am not sure about internationally, and it reviews draft management plans. We had a very serious situation some years ago when major filming for an international franchise took place on Skellig Michael and there was no provision for that in the management plan. It is the same situation for special areas of conservation but we are way behind having management plans in compliance with the habitats directive. An intervention of censure is possible and world heritage status can be removed if the site is not being managed appropriately. That threat has been used in some locations. In Vienna, for instance, a high-rise development was mooted that would have affected the character of the historic city centre of Vienna and the views of St. Stephen's Cathedral. The world heritage committee intervened and said it would undermine the status of the world heritage site. There were similar concerns about the world heritage site designation of the buildings on the waterfront of Liverpool and the impact of development there. There are standards to be met in management plans and the protection of the setting of world heritage sites.

World heritage sites have a core area and a buffer area and that is a very significant issue that is still simmering in relation to the Brú na Bóinne site. The location of the incinerator outside the eastern side of the buffer area has already been controversial for aircraft navigation due to the height of the chimney and the red lights and so on. There is a much more serious issue now with the proposal to build a high-level bridge to the east of Slane, between Slane and the tumulus of Knowth, which is to the west of Newgrange. That would have an impact on the setting of the world heritage site. That is part of the larger agenda for a dual carriageway or motorway from Dublin to Derry, which is something that should no longer contemplated as we need to move away from car-based transport and development.