Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 15:

In page 41, between lines 3 and 4, to insert the following: "Planning Authority’s Record of Protected Structures

19.(1) It will be a requirement to include the register of monuments in the city and county development plans in an appendix.

(2) Councils or local authorities shall be required to include an index of the register of monuments in city and county development plans.

(3) Any record should be subject to all the same terms outlined in sections 17 and 18.

I made an error in the wording. I am not too sure whether the Minister of State will agree to the amendment, which should refer to the planning authority's record of monuments rather than its record of protected structures. That is governed under the Planning and Development Acts and the local authorities.

The amendment proposes a requirement to include the register of protected monuments in an appendix of the city and county development plans. To illustrate, I have in my hand the appendix of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. It is not in the main written statement but in the appendix. This is because it can change. Every county development plan contains an appendix; it is no big thing. In separate parts of the appendix are listed the record of protected structures and the record of monuments. This is very helpful. It sets out the list of protected monuments and places. It also sets out the map number in the county development plan and the location. It further sets out the record of monuments and places reference numbers and the classification.

In many cases, these monuments are also protected structures. This means that they have dual protection. I do not know if the Minister of State has a long-term plan to separate them. There is a lot of merit in a national monument also being a protected structure. I am thinking of some of the little castles and forts in places such as Skibbereen. There is one in Waterford, on a corner opposite a certain hotel. Many of these structures are functional buildings. They are monuments but they are also protected structures. There are also the cathedrals in Dublin. Many of them are functional, which is fantastic.

I put forward the amendment because there is no onus on local authorities to include the information to which I refer. It is way beyond their capacity and expertise. This is a specific area of archaeology. Every county development plan contains these lists. There are several merits to this. One is that the lists are definitive and another is that the codes are listed in the development plan map. What is a city and county development plan map? It is a legitimate expectation of how the county will develop over a period of five to six years, and possibly ten years if this change is introduced. A member of the public can look at the 16 or 17 maps on which these monuments are identified as being of archaeological interest. That is very important.

Inclusion of the relevant information on these maps would be particularly informative for the farming community and people seeking to buy land because they would be able to identify monuments on said land. Some archaeological sites are not visible to the eye. This way of operating has served local authorities for years. If the Minister of State cannot accept this amendment to the primary legislation but agrees with the principle of it, which I believe he does, then perhaps what I am suggesting could be done by way of regulation instead of. It is important to do this. There are 31 local authorities and 31 development plans. It is important that sites of archaeological interest are included on the maps. It is also important to have a definitive list for the public. Who is the greatest guardian of our archaeology and heritage? It is the public. It is important that people see things, but they have to know that they are there in the first place.

We have had much discussion on the planning and development legislation, heritage and protected cultural structures. We need to build up layers of data in order to inform both our national development plan and conservation practices. We have many local authorities and State organisations doing different things. We need to bring everything together. With new technology, we should be able to layer down. Recently, I went through the layers of information relating to an 1860s property I am involved with . It was quite interesting to see the evolution of its development.

This is an important amendment. The city and county managers have no difficulty with it. Sitting local authority members think it is important. Archaeological societies and historical societies think it is wonderful. It would make it real for local communities if they could see these important structures and places on maps and in inventories or indexes relating to them.