Link to story. Free registration required to read page. Article reproduced below.
Tara Valley group claims publicly elected status
THE Save Tara-Skryne Valley Group has claimed it was publicly elected by the people of Meath to represent them in the matter of the M3 motorway.
The statement is made in the letter delivered to the Minister for the Environment, Dick Roche, at the Customs House, last week.
“We were publicly elected by the people of Meath to represent them in this matter. Many of us are Meath residents ourselves. Accordingly, we ask you to recognise your duty as Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to protect the Hill of Tara, since the current proposal for the M3 will have an enormous adverse effect on all three components of your ministry in relation to county Meath,” the group told the minister.
The written submission included some 10,000 signatures collected from across the world on an on-line petition opposing the motorway route through the Tara-Skryne valley.
Issues addressed in the submission include the test trenching, the National Monuments Acts, previous cases of a similar nature including the recent Dunne vs Minister for the Environment over Carrickmines, and the belief by archaeologists that the National Monument status of the Hill of Tara should include the valley in question.
The objectors say they want to make it clear they wish to assist the minister in resolving the matter in a non-confrontational manner, and avoid protracted and expensive delays because of legal actions or protests.
“We know that you are in a difficult position because you have inherited this plan from your predecessors and have only recently taken office. We would be delighted to meet with you in an effort to resolve this matter as peacefully and as effectively as possible,” they say to Dick Roche, who is due to make a decision on the National Roads Authority (NRA) proposal soon.
“Litigation is a last resort that as normal citizens we would wish to avoid. Nonetheless we are preparing for that possible eventuality.”
The letter is signed by Vincent Salafia, public relations officer; Dr Muireann Ni Bhrolchain, spokesperson; Percy Jordan, chairperson; John Kavanagh, treasurer, and Niall Brosnan, communications officer of the group.
The environment minister has said he has no plans to submit the Tara region for inclusion on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.
In a letter to the Tara Foundation, he stated that UNESCO has reduced the number of nominations it accepts annually for inclusion on the World Heritage List, and that it gives preference to nominations from developing countries and countries that have no inscriptions, so as to promote a more balanced regional representation.
He goes on to state that, while the Department of the Environment recognises the archaeological significance of the area, any development there will be subject to the safeguards stemming from the National Monuments Legislation 1930-2004. There are no plans at present to prepare a new tentative list, including the Tara-Skryne Valley.