Report suggests turning Liffey valley area into national park

The Liffey valley in counties Kildare and Dublin should be designated as a national park in order to protect its landscape from over-development, according to a new report.

Designation of an area stretching from Islandbridge in Dublin to Straffan in Co Kildare would provide the best way of developing the recreational and tourism potential of the valley, the report prepared for an umbrella group of local, residents' and environmental organisations says.

The Liffey Valley Park Alliance believes the park can be created initially at no cost to the taxpayer, simply by leaving the lands in their current agricultural or amenity zoning. However, it suggests the establishment later of a Liffey Valley Authority to oversee the development of the area and co-ordinate the activities of the four county councils along the river.

The alliance says it is not against housing or other development in the area but is "strongly of the view" that there is adequate land available for this purpose outside the valley. It believes some landowners would regard national park designation as an "enhancement" of their properties.

The proposal is modelled on the Lagan Valley Regional Park, which extends from Belfast to Lisburn and was established in the 1960s. The Laganside park passes through three local authority areas, but is managed by the Northern Ireland Department of the Environment. The report, which has been seen by The Irish Times, will be launched at a conference on the Liffey Valley National Park next Saturday (March 6th) in the Spa Hotel in Lucan.

The Liffey valley is a vital but fragile "green lung" for the burgeoning communities of west Dublin and north Kildare, the report says. Together with Dublin Bay and the Dublin-Wicklow mountains, it is one of the main natural amenities in the region and has been a tourist destination since the 19th century.

"Few capital cities anywhere have on their doorsteps such a magnificent landscape, still largely intact."

The lands already in State ownership, together with institutional land and land in private recreational use, means that the "nucleus" of the park is already in place. All that is required, the report says, is the "political will to make it a reality".

The possible benefits of a park are examined, including the opening up of the river corridor to public access; additional playing facilities for local sports clubs; and the potential for recreational activities.

The valley embraces a wide variety of natural and historical attractions, from parks such as the Phoenix Park and Lucan demesne, to period houses such as Castletown and Farmleigh.

There are six national parks in the State, all in rural or mountainous areas and entirely in State ownership.

Members of the alliance include An Taisce, the Irish Georgian Society, the Irish Wildlife Trust and 16 community organisations from Dublin and Kildare.

In 1990, a special amenity area order (SAAO) was issued to protect the Liffey valley. This has been renewed at five-yearly intervals since.

However, the report says this order only covers a narrow area along the riverbanks, has not been extended and has provided insufficient protection against repeated attempts to rezone lands in the area. It says the local "archetype" for the creation of a national park is the Phoenix Park, which was created by James Butler, Duke of Ormonde, over 300 years ago, in the face of commercial and political opposition.

"The achievement of a Liffey valley park in the first years of the new millennium would be as visionary an action as was the creation of the Phoenix Park 350 years ago." More information on next Saturday's conference is available from the LVPA at 6283178/6245415.