AFTER MUCH anticipation, Clare County Council published the 246-page report charting the future management plan for the Cliffs of Moher Walk.
On Wednesday, the Council published Cliffs of Moher Coastal Walk Management Plan. The Tobin report recommends the local authority become the management organisation for the future management and development of the coastal trail from Doolin to Hags Head, a trail that showcases the world-renowned Cliffs of Moher.
A leaked draft of the report has caused consternation among landowners in North Clare with the mention of a compulsory purchase order raising tensions in the locality. “It is not the intention of Clare County Council to wield this option over landowners,” Director of Tourism with the Council, Siobhán McNulty stated.
Consultant Tobin prepared the report on behalf of the Council and in partnership with the Department of Rural and Community Development, Fáilte Ireland and Clare Local Development Company (CLDC). The report was commissioned in 2023 and took two years to be published, it reviewed visitor infrastructure relating to visitor numbers as well as the management of the Cliffs of Moher Coastal Walk.
The report found that, in general, visitors do not differentiate between the Council-owned Cliffs of Moher Experience located centrally along the coastal walk, and the Cliffs of Moher Coastal Walk managed by the CLDC. It also examined the financial model for payments to landowners and reviewed land ownership, and considered existing agreements, signage, access, maintenance and repair programmes.
The Cliffs of Moher Coastal Walk functions as a popular trail that is accessed not only at the Cliffs of Moher Experience, but at other locations outwards from the centre. It forms part of the Burren Way, which is a 114km National Waymarked Trail from Corofin to Lahinch. The Burren Way is one of 24 such National Waymarked Trails in Ireland. Consequently, the trail is frequently accessed at Doolin to the north, and at Hags Head to the south.
The final report assessed and proposed recommendations on how best the “off road” section of the trail can interface seamlessly with the “beginning and end” of the coastal walk and in the villages along the proposed route. Sustainable transport, health & safety, ancillary infrastructure, marketing, international and national best practice examples, as well as an environmental assessment were also discussed with key stakeholders and recommendations included in the report. The report has proposed options for securing operational control of lands, that new models for payments to landowners be put in place and that the Cliffs of Moher Coastal Walk be removed from the Walks Scheme.
Welcoming the publication of the report Deputy Chief Executive of Clare County Council, Alan Farrell, said, “The final report provides recommendations about the future visitor management, safety, maintenance and upgrade of the walk as well as parking, biodiversity and marketing. Its proposed management model would see Clare County Council become the trail management organisation for the future Coastal Walk”.
Clare County Council Director of Service Tourism Development, Siobhán McNulty, said, “The report recommends Clare County Council, as the trail management organisation, utilise its resources to manage, operate, market and maintain the Cliffs of Moher Coastal Walk. The report also recommends that the management of the walk be overseen by a dedicated board of expertise under a new model proposed in the report”.
Highlighting the importance of continuing to work with landowners in considering some of the proposals around a new model for access to the walk, management of the land and new model of payment, Ms McNulty said, “The Council recognises the landowners are key stakeholders in the Coastal Walk and in line with a commitment that the landowners should be among the first to receive the final document, a copy of the final report was sent ahead of publication today. While a leaked draft report has been circulating for some time, Clare County Council was not in a position to issue the final report until it was signed off by the partners. I would like to thank the landowners for their patience in awaiting the report and I acknowledge the tension resulting from the leaked earlier draft. Much of the focus of the leak was on the use of CPO. It is not the intention of Clare County Council to wield this option over landowners,” she added.
“With the report published Clare County Council looks forward to working with the landowners, our partners and the local community to develop the walk in a sustainable manner that protects the environment, showcases the most visited natural attraction in Ireland and benefits the North Clare community for generations to come,” she said.
Chair of the Clare County Council Tourism SPC, Cllr Shane Talty (FF) said, “I welcome that the final report is now published so that we can begin working towards a mutually beneficial plan for the future management of the world-renowned Cliffs of Moher Coastal Walk. The future of the trail must be developed to the benefit of the local community, landowners, visitors and the local economy”.
