In making this submission, the Heritage Council sought to support Government in its international and national commitments concerning biodiversity and its protection, conservation and management. These include commitments under the Convention on Biological Diversity, the EU target to halt biodiversity loss by 2010, as well as several EU Directives and national legislation.

This Public Realm Plan for the Walled Town of Fethard seeks to provide a strategic framework by which the town can maximise the benefits of its many assets, without losing those special qualities that give it character and charm. 

The survey identified 3,168 excavations for the period between 1930 and 1997. A total of 1,353 reports were classified as unpublished (43%). Eighty-one reports were considered to be of national significance, while a further 340 reports were of regional significance and should be published in either a journal or as part of a ‘synthetic package’. 

Category 3 reports represent the largest class of unpublished material (431 excavations), and their potential for further publication needs careful consideration. Less significant excavations constitute a relatively small number of reports (186). The component of the backlog that can clearly be defined as suitable for publication in its own right accounts for 421 reports.

One of the critical resources we possess as a nation is our urban places and spaces, and if we are to send them into the future with their values intact, we must plan and manage them effectively to ensure that they continue to function and to thrive both
economically and culturally.