*Photograph: Eamon Ward
A NEW MOBILE visitor centre Discovery Van for the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) has been launched in the Burren.
On Monday, the Minister of State for Nature, Heritage and Biodiversity, Christopher O Sullivan TD (FF) officially launched The Discovery Van which will serve as a mobile visitor centre serving the Burren National Park and North Clare.
Visitors will be met at popular trailheads along the Burren by the Discovery Van where they will receive an informed interpretation of the Burren’s unique landscapes, geology, flora, and fauna along with practical advice on trails, safety, and responsible visiting.
The Clare Echo understands the total cost of the Discovery Van inclusive of VAT and taxes was just under €84,800. This includes the purchase of the new van, the fit out of the vehicle, graphics and all other associated costs.
During the busy summer season, the van will be an on-site information point. It marks a new approach in how the NPWS engages with the public in the region, bringing nature education and information directly to the heart of communities, schools, and protected areas.
Despite steadily increasing visitor numbers, the Burren National Park has never had any infrastructure on site. While a dedicated information point has been in place for many years in Corofin, many visitors now go directly to the Park and these remote, but popular, trailheads lacked an NPWS staff presence to welcome and assist visitors.
Year-round, the van will act as an outreach tool, enabling NPWS guides to engage with schools in the wider area offering environmental education linked to habitats, species, and conservation, as well as attending festivals, community events, and national fairs.
Junior Minister O’Sullivan formally launched the Discovery Van at the Michael Cusack Heritage Centre in Carron. Among those in attendance were Junior Minister, Timmy Dooley (FF), Mayor of Clare, Cllr Paul Murphy (FG), Cllr Joe Killeen (FF), staff from the NPWS, conservation rangers from Burren National Park, Cathaoirleach of the Michael Cusack Centre Dónal Ó hAiniféin and the Centre’s Manager, Tim Madden.
Speaking in Carron, the Junior Minister remarked of the Burren’s beauty, “I’m only here three hours but I’ve been blown away. I am embarrassed to say it is my first time in The Burren but it is like something from a lunar landscape, it is other worldly”. Collaboration between different groups and agencies within the region was exemplary, he noted, “I’m really envious coming from Cork because here there is unbelievable collaboration. The setting is extraordinary, it may not be exactly how it was but this is how I imagine Michael Cusack grew up with these surroundings around him”. He continued, “ye have come together and collaborated to create something special, I’ll be telling the people of West Cork this is how collaboration works”.
A love of wildlife, nature and the outdoors can be fostered at an early age, he said. “The key to get them interested. Once you discover the beauties of nature, you never lose it and this helps to provide an opportunity for those visiting The Burren National Park to learn about the flora and fauna. To be honest I’ve to pinch myself that I get to go and visit these places and I get paid for it”.
Divisional Manager with the NPWS, William Cormacan believed the Van would act as “a great resource for the locality”. He stated, “it’s about real positivity and people working together, it is a really exciting time to be working in the Burren, we’re on the cusp of a lot, we have a new visitor centre, a new bus and a new field study centre”. He expressed hope that the Junior Minister would become a more frequent visitor to North Clare and that he would be making positive announcements on such trips.
Mayor Murphy said it was “a really exciting initiative. The discovery can isn’t just a van, it is a mobile hub for awareness”. He was hopeful he would spark a real interest in The Burren. “We know how special our environment here in the Burren, over 30,000 hectares are designated as a SAC”. In what was his first official event as the county’s first citizen, Paul commented, “it’s not just about protecting what we have but helping feel connected to, the discovery van does just that, the more we know and care the better we look after the world around us”.
Ó hÁiniféin explained that they are “custodians of the Michael Cusack Centre, we see ourselves as custodians for everything he stood for”. The Ruan based primary school principal added, “we are thrilled with our fantastic developing relationship with NPWS. The leave no trace policy and everything about the Cusack Centre and the Burren aligns with the tourist strategy, the discovery van is as a fantastic idea. A little is tasty, once they’re hooked on that I’m confident we’ll have return visitors”. He continued, “the Burren is out of this world and it is unique, anybody that visits the Burren I challenge you not to have your heart blown open because it is something else”.
