Eugene Murphy (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail)
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747. To ask the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the status of the application for UNESCO World Heritage Site status for the ancient royal sites in Rathcroghan, County Roscommon; when the decision will be announced; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20195/17]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Ireland’s current World Heritage Tentative List has come about from a very comprehensive process undertaken by a panel of Irish and international heritage experts specifically appointed for that purpose. The process included full public consultation and an in-depth review of all proposed candidate sites. My Department has engaged with local authorities and local groups from the areas with proposals on the Tentative List to gauge the extent of the support available to advance the proposals and to clarify the work and resources required for that purpose. The fundamental requirement is that each site must be capable of demonstrating Outstanding Universal Value to UNESCO.

Of the sites featuring on the Tentative List, the greater progress so far has been with the Royal Sites serial nomination which includes Cashel, Dún Ailinne, the Hill of Uisneach, the Rathcroghan Complex, the Tara Complex and Navan Fort (Eamhain Macha). Technical evaluations have been produced for each of the six component sites and my Department is engaged in on-going discussions with stakeholders from all six locations to review progress and to chart the next steps. In that context, it has been agreed that the technical evaluations will be sent for international peer review following which work will begin on developing draft management plans for each site, including designation of core and buffer zones in each case.

As part of the process, the Steering Group representative of stakeholders from each area will be visiting each of the six sites. The next such site visit, and further plenary meeting, is planned for Rathcroghan in June.

The culmination of these steps, which will also have to be adopted with each of the other tentative list nominations, would be the creation of the full nomination documents for submission to UNESCO.

I am committed to supporting the current proposals in every way that I can. The process is undoubtedly both complex and lengthy and the work at every stage must be supported and developed from the local level up with stakeholder buy-in and commitment at every stage. While this adds to the timescale, it avoids a top down approach lacking the engagement necessary with local communities to secure full support for the proposals and for the protection and preservation of the sites into the future.