Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this important matter and apologise on behalf of the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Heather Humphreys, who is unavailable due to other commitments outside the House today. However, the Minister is very much aware of the concerns of the Senator.

The UNESCO world heritage committee requires every property inscribed on the world heritage site list to have a management plan or other documented management system in place that explains how its outstanding universal value will be preserved.Outstanding universal value is a fundamental requirement for retaining world heritage status. The Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention, issued by UNESCO in July 2013, set out the issues that need to be addressed as part of the management plan for a world heritage site. UNESCO also provides guidelines on what content must go into the plan before it can be submitted to the organisation for approval.

A new draft Brú na Boinne Management Plan, to replace the previous plan that dates back to 2002, has been prepared in accordance with the UNESCO guidelines. The draft needs to be finalised and submitted to UNESCO as soon as possible. In accordance with UNESCO requirements, the main responsibility for implementation of the plan is shared between the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and the Office of Public Works.

The development of the present draft management plan has taken place over the past four years, during which there have been two periods of public consultation, one of which is still ongoing. Observations were initially invited from the public in April 2011. Fifty-seven submissions were received by the Department, all of which were considered in the course of the drafting that has taken place since. A special public meeting was also held on site in June 2011 to improve community awareness of the plan.

The Brú na Boinne world heritage site management plan steering committee was established by the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht in 2011 to help oversee the preparation of the management plan. The steering committee, which the Department chairs, is made up of local interest groups, officials from the Department and the OPW, along with representatives from Louth and Meath county councils, Fáilte Ireland, the Heritage Council, the International Council on Monuments and Sites Ireland and An Taisce. Representatives from the Boyne Valley consultative committee and two local elected councillors also sit on the steering committee.

The draft plan sets out the key objectives and future vision for the management of the world heritage site. It provides a framework for the proactive management of the site, helping to ensure that its outstanding universal value is sustained and preserved for future generations. It informs and guides the day-to-day and long-term management of Brú na Boinne.

Agreement has been secured, at steering committee level, for the vast bulk of the actions set out in the current draft plan. One new major initiative is the creation of an enhanced management structure for the Brú na Boinne site that includes a special community forum and other community involvement and oversight in the decision-making process. The community forum will meet at least twice a year to oversee the implementation of the management plan and its proposed actions. The forum will meet at the start of the year to consider and discuss the actions that can be implemented in the coming months, and again at the end of the year, when the Department and the OPW will report on progress made on agreed actions.

The Minister can understand that there are issues that continue to be of concern to some sections of the local community. These include planning, with some community representatives looking for a separate planning system to be put in place for the world heritage site. The draft plan, through consultation, seeks to accommodate all reasonable proposals. Obviously not all aspirations are resolvable through the plan itself. That said, two new actions directly related to planning are included in the draft plan. These mean that there will be special recognition of the world heritage site in the administration of the planning systems in Counties Meath and Louth, with clear, precise and time-bound actions in place in regard to pre-planning consultations with prospective planning applicants. There will also be specific guidance for potential planning applicants on the site and the design of proposed new developments.

The present position of the draft plan is that the Department and the OPW have invited the public to make written submissions which can be lodged any time up to and including 20 March 2015. This is an important process which allows all members of the community to express their views, offer opinions and have their say about what is in the plan. Apart from updating the general strategy for conserving and managing the world heritage site, the public can also comment on how it should address matters such as visitor management and public awareness, research, education, nature conservation, liaison with the local community and sustainable tourism.

All submissions received will be carefully reviewed and considered by the Department. The Minister can assure the Senator that everything that can reasonably be taken on board will be built into the final draft. That element is important to note in terms of the points made by the Senator.

As mentioned previously, the steering group is made up of a number of interested parties and, most importantly, includes local representatives. I urge the Senator, as a public representative, to use this structure, which we do not use often enough. Public representatives or Oireachtas Members should consult the local public representatives that are part of the group. The Minister, Deputy Humphreys, encourages all concerned to avail of this opportunity for public input and to take part in the public consultation process. I will relate the Senator's points to the Minister. The consultation process that is in place should be availed of first.