John Paul O'Shea (Cork North-West, Fine Gael)
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917. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the number of rural recreation officers in place in Cork county; their base location within the county; the respective areas covered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56903/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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My department currently provides funding for 23 Rural Recreation Officers (RROs) in 22 Local Development Companies (LDCs) countrywide. The RRO assists with the delivery of my department’s Walks Scheme and supports other rural recreation initiatives at local level.

Under the Walks Scheme landholders are contracted to undertake maintenance work on National Waymarked Ways and other priority trails that traverse their lands. The Scheme is currently operating on 116 trails, supported by approximately 2,691 landowners.

There are currently 4 RO’s supporting the Walks Scheme in Co Cork, as per the table below. This is the most of any county.

3 of these RROs are based in Cork, with the 4th having responsibility for the Walks Scheme trails on all the offshore islands, not just those in Cork. There are 2 RROs in West Cork given the volume of landholders on the Walks Scheme there.

John Paul O'Shea (Cork North-West, Fine Gael)
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918. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the current status of the Cork County Outdoor Recreational Plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56904/25]

John Paul O'Shea (Cork North-West, Fine Gael)
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919. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht his plans to provide funding for a county outdoor recreation officer within Cork County Council; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56905/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 918 and 919 together.

A key action of Embracing Ireland’s Outdoors, the National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023- 2027, is the development of a County Outdoor Recreation Plan to reflect the priorities of the national strategy in each county and to ensure the development of outdoor recreation in a county in a planned manner. This will create a more strategic approach and ensure that available funding and resources are better aligned with national and county priorities.

These plans will guide the development of outdoor recreation in each county over the next 5 years. It is anticipated that in time the funding decisions of applications submitted under the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme (ORIS) and potentially other funding sources will be linked to the plan.

My department is providing funding to support the development of the plans and, so far, 22 counties have commenced work on their plans.

Cork County Council submitted an Expression of Interest form to my Department for funding for the development of a County Outdoor Recreation Plan for Cork on 11th September 2025. My officials are currently engaging with them on this and expect to approve funding in the coming weeks.

My department has also committed funding of €1.28 million over three years to support a pilot programme in partnership with Sport Ireland to introduce County Outdoor Recreation Officers in six Local Sport Partnerships – Clare, Longford, Sligo, Waterford, Mayo, and Meath.

These positions were introduced to support a more coordinated and strategic approach to the development of outdoor recreation infrastructure at national and county levels and to develop and implement the county outdoor recreation plans in these areas.

The pilot has been in operation for over a year and as part of the pilot process an evaluation on the role and effectiveness of the positions will take place in the coming months. The evaluation will inform the decision as regards the establishment of such positions in any other locations.

John Paul O'Shea (Cork North-West, Fine Gael)
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920. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht his Departments view of the roll out of eco toilets at large recreational sites, which are being broadly welcomed by users; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56906/25]

John Paul O'Shea (Cork North-West, Fine Gael)
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921. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if his Department supports the use of 'Counters' at large recreational sites in order to capture the number of attendees at these sites; if his Department will work with stakeholders to fund these counters; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56907/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 920 and 921 together.

My Department recognises the value of electronic trail counters in capturing visitor numbers and informing future investment in outdoor recreation. Currently, 46 counters are funded by my department alongside the delivery of the Walks Scheme. A number of counters have also been funded as elements of projects supported under the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme (ORIS). ORIS funds outdoor recreation infrastructure such as trails, walkways, cycleways, blueways and bridleways in rural areas.

In addition, I am aware that there are counters in place on trails and at recreational sites which are operated by other bodies including local authorities, local development companies, community groups and Coillte.

We will continue to assess the need for additional counters, taking account of the benefits of reliable visitor data to support the effective management and development of recreational sites. My officials are also exploring ways to better collate and make available the data gathered by all of the different organisations.

As regards eco toilets, these can be funded as part of projects submitted under ORIS. In addition, I understand that such toilets have also been funded through my Department's strategic partnership with Coillte.