Mark Duffy (Fine Gael)

I welcome the witnesses to the committee. Greenways have proliferated throughout the country over the past number of years and there have been various challenges in various locations. There have also been very positive interventions in various communities. A lot of the time, having experienced this in my community, a phrase used very regularly is "consultation over confrontation", and this is always a good way to operate. In north Mayo in particular, I have had experiences of greenway developments that were very heavy-handed by the local authority. They ultimately failed because of this heavy-handedness. There are other very positive examples that have had great success.

My first question is for Mr. O'Brien. He identified the issue of fear, such as the fear of certain projects dividing farms or having biosecurity, litter control, crime or privacy issues. These issues naturally breathe a lot of fear into projects. Are there examples of existing greenways that have experienced this? Are there live issues he is aware of or that his members have communicated to him?