Broadhaven Bay
Encyclopedia
Broadhaven Bay is a natural bay
of the Atlantic Ocean
situated on the northwestern coast of County Mayo
, Ireland
. The opening of the bay faces northward, stretching between Erris Head
on the west side and Kid Island on the east side with approximately 8.6 km between the two sides.
It borders the parishes of Kilcommon
, Kiltane
and Kilmore Erris
in the Barony of Erris
. Landscape largely consists of Atlantic blanket bog
interspersed with some areas of machair and white sandy beaches. Population is relatively low, mainly concentrated around inlets along the coastline.
(cSAC) in 2000. This designation concerns:
Furthermore, the inner parts of Broadhaven Bay known as Sruwaddacon Bay
is designated as a Special Protection Area (SPA) and, together with the nearby Glenamoy
Bog complex SAC important for wintering wildfowl species, in particular for Brents Geese, which is Annex II listed under the EU Birds directive.
era in the 16th century, several of the Armada ships floundered in the waters of North Mayo. The Santiago went down in the bay and many ships through the years have met their end in these waters. There are many tales of fortunes of gold and valuables being stashed away by local pirates after looting unfortunate ships which tried to take shelter from rough seas. See Brian Rua U'Cearbhain
In 1715 Sir Arthur Shaen, an English landlord in Erris
, began building a small town on a wet and marshy area near ‘The Mullet
’ peninsula. To drain this marshy area and to form a passageway from Blacksod Bay
into Broadhaven Bay, Shaen had a canal
excavated which would allow small boats to pass from one bay to the other. Development of the town, later to be Belmullet
, proved to be a slow process, and the canal was blocked and unusable by the mid-18th century. In 1845 the Government sanctioned a grant of £5,000 to match the total of £4,000 raised locally to re-open the canal which would unite Broadhaven and Blacksod Bays. Work on the canal began in 1845, but due to the Irish Famine which devastated the area, it was not completed until 1851. A report in 1851 states that the canal was being used extensively, and also states that the canal could be crossed by a swivel bridge.
In the north western mouth of Broadhaven Bay stands Ballyglass lighthouse which guides boats through the bay in more recent times. The lifeboat for the area is stationed at Ballyglass pier. There are many wonderful white sandy beaches all around the bay especially at Carrowteige
/Rinroe, Glengad
and Inver
.
Marine mammal legislation also protects all cetaceans as Annex IV species (species of community interest in need of strict protection) under the European Habitats directive.
Within this directive, there are five marine mammal species that are known to frequent Irish waters which are further listed as Annex II species (protected endangered and vulnerable animals), namely;
All five species are found in the Broadhaven Bay catchment.
in Kilcommon
parish. They rise out of the sea rising steeply to over 100 metres above sea level. One of the rocks is entirely bisected by a long narrow cave dramatically from one side to the other and they are a popular site for visiting divers, sub aqua teams, canoeists and adventurers.
cliffs due to constant wave action to sheltered mud sediments at the upper end of the estuary of Sruth Fada Conn Bay.
Encompassed within an area that is relatively small, Broadhaven Bay and its inlet, Sruth Fada Conn Bay represent possibly the only known area in Ireland with all five Annex II (listed above in Wildlife) species present on a regular basis. The bay is species rich with 72 species counted.
In exposed areas of the bay regularly exposed to wave action the anenome Phellia gausapata is found in shallow waters A cave in deeper water supports colonies of the rare anenome Parazoanthus anguicomus and soft coral Alcyonium glomeratum
.
In the outer bay zone beds of kelp thrive with foliose brown algaes and several varieties of the axinellid sponge species have colonised the reefs. Other communities tolerant of vertical or steeply sloped bedrock are thriving also.
A rare crab Pirimela denticulata and hydroid Tamarisca tamarisca both live in the bay. In the sublittoral zones of the bay lives the burrowing urchin Echinocardium cordatum
whose hairy shells regularly turn up on the shores, seagrass Zostera marina
and oysters Ostrea edulis.
Broadhaven Bay is of high conservation importance owing to the presence of several habitats that are listed on Annex 1 of the EU Habitats Directive. Large shallow bays, intertidal sand flats, reefs, marine caves, salt marshes are of ornithological importance for breeding and overwintering bird species.
In the inner bay of Sruth Fada Conn and other Broadhaven Bay inlets, there are extensive intertidal mudflats
characterised by polychaete
s and bivalve
communities. Atlantic salt marshes fringe on the blanket bog in this area also and species include turf fucoids, sea thrift
, sea arrowgrass
, Sea Plantain, salt marsh
grasses, rushes Juncus gerardii
and Juncus maritimus
.
Broadhaven Bay and its inlets support important numbers of breeding terns of several varieties and black-headed gulls. It is an important area for wintering waterfowl. The following species have nationally important populations in the area - Red-breasted merganser
, Ringed plover
, Grey plover
, Sanderling
, Dunlin
, Bar-tailed godwit
, Brent Goose
, Oystercatcher
, Eurasian Golden Plover
, Lapwing
, Knot
, Curlew
, Common Redshank
and Turnstone
.
Taken overall, it serves to highlight the uniqueness of Broadhaven Bay and the waters of northwest Mayo. In comparison with other areas in Ireland where surveys have been carried out, Broadhaven provides a high marine mammal
species diversity, with sightings of 10 out of the 24 marine mammal species currently recorded in Irish waters occurring in the area.
where Royal Dutch Shell
sent the Solitaire, reputedly the largest pipelaying ship in the world, into the bay to lay an offshore section of proposed extremely high pressure gas.
A local fisherman, Pat O'Donnell, served five months in Castlerea prison (February/March/April 2010) for refusing to stop fishing the bay in order to allow the Corrib Gas Project to lay a high pressure, unodourised pipeline and umbilical through it.
The proposed project is under examination by the country's planning appeals board, An Bord Pleanála
for the third time. The third application from Royal Dutch Shell
involves the laying of a massive tunnel some 4.2 metres diameter the entire length of the bay which is protected by European legislation as a Special Area of Conservation
, a National heritage area
and a Special Protection Area
(Birds directive). The proposed gas pipeline diameter is just 0.5 metres. The developers deny that the proposed huge tunnel in the protected bay is in order for them to bring in all future fossil fuel finds by the same route.
Bay
A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...
of the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
situated on the northwestern coast of County Mayo
County Mayo
County Mayo is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the village of Mayo, which is now generally known as Mayo Abbey. Mayo County Council is the local authority for the county. The population of the county is 130,552...
, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. The opening of the bay faces northward, stretching between Erris Head
Erris Head
Erris Head is a promontory at the northernmost tip of the Mullet Peninsula, located in the barony of Erris in northwest County Mayo, Ireland. It is a well known and recognised landmark used by mariners and weather forecasters alike. It is also a very scenic viewpoint, with an unspoilt view of the...
on the west side and Kid Island on the east side with approximately 8.6 km between the two sides.
It borders the parishes of Kilcommon
Kilcommon
Kilcommon is a civil parish in Erris, north Mayo consisting of two large peninsulas; Dún Chaocháin and Dún Chiortáin. It consists of 37 townlands, some of which are so remote that they have no inhabitants...
, Kiltane
Kiltane
-Origins:Kiltane derives its name from Cill Seadhna, or Seadhna's church, which was in the townland of Kiltane by the banks of the Owenmore river. The name 'Seadhna' was well known in the Early Christian Period. There is mention of a bishop and priest of that name in an old tract but no detail as...
and Kilmore Erris
The Mullet
The Mullet Peninsula, also known as the Mullet, is a peninsula in the barony of Erris in County Mayo, Ireland. It consists of a large promontory connected to the mainland at Belmullet , a town of about 2,000 inhabitants, by a narrow isthmus. There are several small towns on the Mullet peninsula...
in the Barony of Erris
Erris
Erris is a barony in northwestern County Mayo in Ireland consisting of over , much of which is mountainous blanket bog. It has extensive sea coasts along its west and north boundaries. The main towns are Belmullet and Bangor Erris. The name Erris derives from the Irish 'Iar Ros' meaning 'western...
. Landscape largely consists of Atlantic blanket bog
Blanket bog
Blanket bog or blanket mire is an area of peatland, forming where there is a climate of high rainfall and a low level of evapotranspiration, allowing peat to develop not only in wet hollows but over large expanses of undulating ground. The blanketing of the ground with a variable depth of peat...
interspersed with some areas of machair and white sandy beaches. Population is relatively low, mainly concentrated around inlets along the coastline.
Special Area of Conservation
Broadhaven Bay was designated by the National Parks and Wildlife Services, NPWS, part of the Department of the Environment as a candidate Special Area of ConservationSpecial Area of Conservation
A Special Area of Conservation is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive , also known as the Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora...
(cSAC) in 2000. This designation concerns:
- The presence of four key marine/coastal habitat types that are listed in Annex I of the EU Council Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Fauna and Flora (Habitats Directive: 92/43/EEC, 1982), including Atlantic salt marsh, tidal mudflats, reefs and large shallow bays;
- The presence of a number of unusual marine communities and species, and;
- The seasonal presence of wintering wildfowl and breeding terns (Sterna spp.).
Furthermore, the inner parts of Broadhaven Bay known as Sruwaddacon Bay
Sruwaddacon Bay
Sruwaddacon Bay is a tidal estuary which runs through the middle of the Gaeltacht Kilcommon Parish, Erris, North County Mayo; it is of historical importance in Irish legend, an important marine habitat, an E.U. Special Area of Conservation and an E.U...
is designated as a Special Protection Area (SPA) and, together with the nearby Glenamoy
Glenamoy
Glenamoy is a village in the parish of Kilcommon, Erris in the northern part of County Mayo in Ireland.Glenamoy is a general term for the following townlands:* Bellagelly North...
Bog complex SAC important for wintering wildfowl species, in particular for Brents Geese, which is Annex II listed under the EU Birds directive.
History
During the Spanish ArmadaSpanish Armada
This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...
era in the 16th century, several of the Armada ships floundered in the waters of North Mayo. The Santiago went down in the bay and many ships through the years have met their end in these waters. There are many tales of fortunes of gold and valuables being stashed away by local pirates after looting unfortunate ships which tried to take shelter from rough seas. See Brian Rua U'Cearbhain
Brian Rua U'Cearbhain
- Brian Rua O’Cearbhain :Brian Rua is a well-known 17th century Errisman. He is remembered as the prophet of Erris, a large Barony in the north west of County Mayo...
In 1715 Sir Arthur Shaen, an English landlord in Erris
Erris
Erris is a barony in northwestern County Mayo in Ireland consisting of over , much of which is mountainous blanket bog. It has extensive sea coasts along its west and north boundaries. The main towns are Belmullet and Bangor Erris. The name Erris derives from the Irish 'Iar Ros' meaning 'western...
, began building a small town on a wet and marshy area near ‘The Mullet
The Mullet
The Mullet Peninsula, also known as the Mullet, is a peninsula in the barony of Erris in County Mayo, Ireland. It consists of a large promontory connected to the mainland at Belmullet , a town of about 2,000 inhabitants, by a narrow isthmus. There are several small towns on the Mullet peninsula...
’ peninsula. To drain this marshy area and to form a passageway from Blacksod Bay
Blacksod Bay
Blacksod Bay is a bay of the Atlantic Ocean in Erris, North County Mayo, Ireland. The bay is bounded on its western side by the Mullet Peninsula and to its eastern side by the coastline of Kiltane Parish where it extends southwards from Belmullet towards Gweesalia and Doohoma...
into Broadhaven Bay, Shaen had a canal
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
excavated which would allow small boats to pass from one bay to the other. Development of the town, later to be Belmullet
Belmullet
Belmullet is a coastal Gaeltacht town with a population of around 2,000 on the Mullet Peninsula in the barony of Erris, County Mayo, Ireland. Its name means the "mouth of the mullet"...
, proved to be a slow process, and the canal was blocked and unusable by the mid-18th century. In 1845 the Government sanctioned a grant of £5,000 to match the total of £4,000 raised locally to re-open the canal which would unite Broadhaven and Blacksod Bays. Work on the canal began in 1845, but due to the Irish Famine which devastated the area, it was not completed until 1851. A report in 1851 states that the canal was being used extensively, and also states that the canal could be crossed by a swivel bridge.
In the north western mouth of Broadhaven Bay stands Ballyglass lighthouse which guides boats through the bay in more recent times. The lifeboat for the area is stationed at Ballyglass pier. There are many wonderful white sandy beaches all around the bay especially at Carrowteige
Carrowteige
Ceathrú Thaidhg is a Gaeltacht village and townland on the Dún Chaocháin peninsula in northwestern County Mayo, Ireland. It is within Kilcommon parish in the barony of Erris...
/Rinroe, Glengad
Glengad
Glengad is a small Gaeltacht village in the parish of Kilcommon in northwest County Mayo, Ireland. The townland is also known as Dooncarton , a name which comes from an Iron Age tribal chieftain called Ciortan, a character who appears in the Ulster Cycle legend of the Táin Bó Flidhais.The village...
and Inver
Kilcommon
Kilcommon is a civil parish in Erris, north Mayo consisting of two large peninsulas; Dún Chaocháin and Dún Chiortáin. It consists of 37 townlands, some of which are so remote that they have no inhabitants...
.
Wildlife
Cetaceans are afforded protection within the 200-mile Exclusive Fishery Zone limit of the Irish State under the 1976 Wildlife Act and a 1982 amendment to the Whale Fisheries Act.Marine mammal legislation also protects all cetaceans as Annex IV species (species of community interest in need of strict protection) under the European Habitats directive.
Within this directive, there are five marine mammal species that are known to frequent Irish waters which are further listed as Annex II species (protected endangered and vulnerable animals), namely;
- Common Bottlenose DolphinCommon Bottlenose DolphinTursiops truncatus, commonly known as the Common Bottlenose Dolphin, is the most well-known species from the family Delphinidae.Common bottlenose dolphins are the most familiar dolphins due to the wide exposure they receive in captivity in marine parks, dolphinarias, in movies, and television...
(Tursiops truncatus) - Harbour porpoiseHarbour PorpoiseThe harbour porpoise is one of six species of porpoise. It is one of the smallest marine mammals. As its name implies, it stays close to coastal areas or river estuaries, and as such, is the most familiar porpoise to whale watchers. This porpoise often ventures up rivers, and has been seen...
(Phocoena phocoena) - Gray Seal (Halichoerus grypus)
- harbour/Common sealHarbor SealThe harbor seal , also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere...
(Phoca vitulina vitulina) - European otterEuropean OtterThe European Otter , also known as the Eurasian otter, Eurasian river otter, common otter and Old World otter, is a European and Asian member of the Lutrinae or otter subfamily, and is typical of freshwater otters....
(Lutra lutra)
All five species are found in the Broadhaven Bay catchment.
Stags of Broadhaven
The Stags of Broadhaven are a group of jagged rocky islands a short distance from the high cliffs of Benwee HeadBenwee Head
Benwee Head Cliffs County MayoGaelic: An Bhinn BhuíHeight: 304 metres OS 1/50k Mapsheet: 22 for topGrid Ref: F816 443 Latitude: 54.333659 Longitude: -9.820924ITM: 481576 844301 Prominence: 230m Isolation: 5.4 km...
in Kilcommon
Kilcommon
Kilcommon is a civil parish in Erris, north Mayo consisting of two large peninsulas; Dún Chaocháin and Dún Chiortáin. It consists of 37 townlands, some of which are so remote that they have no inhabitants...
parish. They rise out of the sea rising steeply to over 100 metres above sea level. One of the rocks is entirely bisected by a long narrow cave dramatically from one side to the other and they are a popular site for visiting divers, sub aqua teams, canoeists and adventurers.
Importance as a marine habitat
Broadhaven Bay is an important habitat for many marine mammals and other marine life as it incorporates several different coastal habitats ranging from exposed bedrock at the foot of the Benwee HeadBenwee Head
Benwee Head Cliffs County MayoGaelic: An Bhinn BhuíHeight: 304 metres OS 1/50k Mapsheet: 22 for topGrid Ref: F816 443 Latitude: 54.333659 Longitude: -9.820924ITM: 481576 844301 Prominence: 230m Isolation: 5.4 km...
cliffs due to constant wave action to sheltered mud sediments at the upper end of the estuary of Sruth Fada Conn Bay.
Encompassed within an area that is relatively small, Broadhaven Bay and its inlet, Sruth Fada Conn Bay represent possibly the only known area in Ireland with all five Annex II (listed above in Wildlife) species present on a regular basis. The bay is species rich with 72 species counted.
In exposed areas of the bay regularly exposed to wave action the anenome Phellia gausapata is found in shallow waters A cave in deeper water supports colonies of the rare anenome Parazoanthus anguicomus and soft coral Alcyonium glomeratum
Alcyonium glomeratum
Alcyonium glomeratum or red sea fingers is a species of soft coral in the Alcyoniidae family. It is found around the southern and western coasts of Britain and Ireland.-Description:...
.
In the outer bay zone beds of kelp thrive with foliose brown algaes and several varieties of the axinellid sponge species have colonised the reefs. Other communities tolerant of vertical or steeply sloped bedrock are thriving also.
A rare crab Pirimela denticulata and hydroid Tamarisca tamarisca both live in the bay. In the sublittoral zones of the bay lives the burrowing urchin Echinocardium cordatum
Echinocardium cordatum
Echinocardium cordatum, or the sea potato, is a sea urchin in the family Loveniidae. It is found in sub-tidal regions in temperate seas around the world and lives buried in the sandy sea floor.-Description:...
whose hairy shells regularly turn up on the shores, seagrass Zostera marina
Zostera marina
Zostera marina is a species of seagrass known by the common names common eelgrass and seawrack. It is an aquatic plant native to marine environments on the coastlines of mostly northern sections of North America and Eurasia. It is the most wide-ranging marine flowering plant in the Northern...
and oysters Ostrea edulis.
Broadhaven Bay is of high conservation importance owing to the presence of several habitats that are listed on Annex 1 of the EU Habitats Directive. Large shallow bays, intertidal sand flats, reefs, marine caves, salt marshes are of ornithological importance for breeding and overwintering bird species.
In the inner bay of Sruth Fada Conn and other Broadhaven Bay inlets, there are extensive intertidal mudflats
Mudflat
Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats, are coastal wetlands that form when mud is deposited by tides or rivers. They are found in sheltered areas such as bays, bayous, lagoons, and estuaries. Mudflats may be viewed geologically as exposed layers of bay mud, resulting from deposition of...
characterised by polychaete
Polychaete
The Polychaeta or polychaetes are a class of annelid worms, generally marine. Each body segment has a pair of fleshy protrusions called parapodia that bear many bristles, called chaetae, which are made of chitin. Indeed, polychaetes are sometimes referred to as bristle worms. More than 10,000...
s and bivalve
Bivalvia
Bivalvia is a taxonomic class of marine and freshwater molluscs. This class includes clams, oysters, mussels, scallops, and many other families of molluscs that have two hinged shells...
communities. Atlantic salt marshes fringe on the blanket bog in this area also and species include turf fucoids, sea thrift
Armeria maritima
Armeria maritima is the botanical name for a species of flowering plant.It is a popular garden flower, known by several common names, including thrift, sea thrift, and sea pink. The plant has been distributed worldwide as a garden and cut flower...
, sea arrowgrass
Sea Arrowgrass
Triglochin maritima is a variety of arrowgrass found in brackish marshes, freshwater marshes, wet sandy beaches, fens, damp grassland and bogs. It has a circumboreal distribution, occurring throughout the northern Northern Hemisphere...
, Sea Plantain, salt marsh
Salt marsh
A salt marsh is an environment in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and salt water or brackish water, it is dominated by dense stands of halophytic plants such as herbs, grasses, or low shrubs. These plants are terrestrial in origin and are essential to the stability of the salt marsh...
grasses, rushes Juncus gerardii
Juncus gerardii
Juncus gerardii, commonly known as blackgrass, black needle rush or saltmarsh rush, is a member of the family Juncaceae.-Site:...
and Juncus maritimus
Juncus maritimus
Juncus maritimus, known as the sea rush, is a species of rush that grows on coastlines.-External links:* on the Encyclopedia of Life...
.
Broadhaven Bay and its inlets support important numbers of breeding terns of several varieties and black-headed gulls. It is an important area for wintering waterfowl. The following species have nationally important populations in the area - Red-breasted merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
The Red-breasted Merganser is a diving duck.-Taxonomy:The Red-breasted Merganser was one of the many species originally described by Linnaeus in his 18th-century work, Systema Naturae.-Description:...
, Ringed plover
Ringed Plover
The Common Ringed Plover or Ringed Plover is a small plover.Adults are 17-19.5 cm in length with a 35–41 cm wingspan. They have a grey-brown back and wings, a white belly, and a white breast with one black neckband. They have a brown cap, a white forehead, a black mask around the eyes...
, Grey plover
Grey Plover
The Grey Plover , known as the Black-bellied Plover in North America, is a medium-sized plover breeding in arctic regions. It is a long-distance migrant, with a nearly worldwide coastal distribution when not breeding....
, Sanderling
Sanderling
The Sanderling is a small wader. It is a circumpolar Arctic breeder, and is a long-distance migrant, wintering south to South America, South Europe, Africa, and Australia...
, Dunlin
Dunlin
The Dunlin, Calidris alpina, is a small wader, sometimes separated with the other "stints" in Erolia. It is a circumpolar breeder in Arctic or subarctic regions. Birds that breed in northern Europe and Asia are long-distance migrants, wintering south to Africa, southeast Asia and the Middle East...
, Bar-tailed godwit
Bar-tailed Godwit
The Bar-tailed Godwit is a large wader in the family Scolopacidae, which breeds on Arctic coasts and tundra mainly in the Old World, and winters on coasts in temperate and tropical regions of the Old World...
, Brent Goose
Brent Goose
The Brant or Brent Goose, Branta bernicla, is a species of goose of the genus Branta. The Black Brant is an American subspecies. The specific descriptor bernicla is from the same source as "barnacle" in Barnacle Goose, which looks similar but is not a close relation.-Appearance:The Brant Goose is...
, Oystercatcher
Oystercatcher
The oystercatchers are a group of waders; they form the family Haematopodidae, which has a single genus, Haematopus. They are found on coasts worldwide apart from the polar regions and some tropical regions of Africa and South East Asia...
, Eurasian Golden Plover
Eurasian Golden Plover
The European Golden Plover is a largish plover. This species is similar to two other golden plovers. American Golden Plover, Pluvialis dominiica, and Pacific Golden Plover, Pluvialis fulva, are both smaller, slimmer and relatively longer-legged than European Golden Plover, and both have grey...
, Lapwing
Lapwing
Vanellinae are any of various crested plovers, family Charadriidae, noted for its slow, irregular wingbeat in flight and a shrill, wailing cry. Its length is 10-16 inches. They are a subfamily of medium-sized wading birds which also includes the plovers and dotterels. The Vanellinae are...
, Knot
Knot
A knot is a method of fastening or securing linear material such as rope by tying or interweaving. It may consist of a length of one or several segments of rope, string, webbing, twine, strap, or even chain interwoven such that the line can bind to itself or to some other object—the "load"...
, Curlew
Curlew
The curlews , genus Numenius, are a group of eight species of birds, characterised by long, slender, downcurved bills and mottled brown plumage. They are one of the most ancient lineages of scolopacid waders, together with the godwits which look similar but have straight bills...
, Common Redshank
Common Redshank
The Common Redshank or simply Redshank is an Eurasian wader in the large family Scolopacidae.- Description and systematics :...
and Turnstone
Turnstone
Turnstones are the bird species in the genus Arenaria in the family Scolopacidae. They are closely related to calidrid sandpipers and might be considered members of the tribe Calidriini....
.
Taken overall, it serves to highlight the uniqueness of Broadhaven Bay and the waters of northwest Mayo. In comparison with other areas in Ireland where surveys have been carried out, Broadhaven provides a high marine mammal
Marine mammal
Marine mammals, which include seals, whales, dolphins, and walruses, form a diverse group of 128 species that rely on the ocean for their existence. They do not represent a distinct biological grouping, but rather are unified by their reliance on the marine environment for feeding. The level of...
species diversity, with sightings of 10 out of the 24 marine mammal species currently recorded in Irish waters occurring in the area.
Corrib Gas Project
Broadhaven Bay has in recent years (approx 2002–2010 and ongoing) been the site of the Corrib gas controversyCorrib gas controversy
The Corrib gas controversy concerns plans by Shell E&P Ireland, Statoil Exploration Limited, Vermilion Energy Trust and the Irish government for processing the Corrib gas field through Broadhaven Bay and Sruth Fada Conn Bay in Kilcommon parish, Erris, County Mayo, and objections raised against...
where Royal Dutch Shell
Royal Dutch Shell
Royal Dutch Shell plc , commonly known as Shell, is a global oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the fifth-largest company in the world according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine and one of the six...
sent the Solitaire, reputedly the largest pipelaying ship in the world, into the bay to lay an offshore section of proposed extremely high pressure gas.
A local fisherman, Pat O'Donnell, served five months in Castlerea prison (February/March/April 2010) for refusing to stop fishing the bay in order to allow the Corrib Gas Project to lay a high pressure, unodourised pipeline and umbilical through it.
The proposed project is under examination by the country's planning appeals board, An Bord Pleanála
An Bord Pleanála
An Bord Pleanála is an independent statutory administrative tribunal that decides on appeals from planning decisions made by local authorities in the Republic of Ireland. As of 2007 The Planning Board directly decides major strategic infrastructural projects under the provisions of the Planning...
for the third time. The third application from Royal Dutch Shell
Royal Dutch Shell
Royal Dutch Shell plc , commonly known as Shell, is a global oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the fifth-largest company in the world according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine and one of the six...
involves the laying of a massive tunnel some 4.2 metres diameter the entire length of the bay which is protected by European legislation as a Special Area of Conservation
Special Area of Conservation
A Special Area of Conservation is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive , also known as the Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora...
, a National heritage area
National heritage area
National heritage area is a region defined by a government as notable for cultural, historic, natural or recreation reasons. Compared to a national park, a national heritage area is not subject to the same level of zoning and regulations on land use. They are typically managed at a local...
and a Special Protection Area
Special Protection Area
A Special Protection Area or SPA is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds.Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and certain particularly threatened birds.Together with Special...
(Birds directive). The proposed gas pipeline diameter is just 0.5 metres. The developers deny that the proposed huge tunnel in the protected bay is in order for them to bring in all future fossil fuel finds by the same route.
External links
- Hour long film documentary of Broadhaven Bay & environs 'Pipe Down' http://www.vimeo.com/8668733 Winner of Feature documentary - Waterford Film Festival 2009
- 'The Pipe' http://thepipethefilm.com/ - Trailer for a new film to be launched at Galway Film Festival 8 July 2010.
- Irish Times