"Mr. Ó' Céirín, an active member of the Burren Action Group, ... the much-loved artist, author, publisher and environmentalist was not to see a resolution of the dispute over the Mullaghmore interpretative centre. His text - produced with stunning photographs by the publishing company ... is fitting testament to the passion which drove him to play such a part in the campaign."
Click on the image for more information.
This is the Web Site of the Burren Action Group (B.A.G.). BAG evolved as a local response to oppose plans by the Irish National Parks and Wildlife Service to develop a large scale interpretative centre at Mullaghmore in the Burren, Co. Clare, Ireland.
The purpose of this site is to provide information regarding this campaign. We are also appealing to those who have an interest or involvement in sustainable development and conservation for help.
The Burren is the largest karstic limestone area in western Europe and is known internationally for both its unique flora and its spectacular archeology. The Mullaghmore area is widely regarded as being one of the most interesting, diverse and sensitive parts of the Burren. Apart from the partially completed National Park interpretative centre it remains, for the moment, largely undisturbed.
The Burren Action Group (BAG) have been successfully opposing the siting of visitor facilities at this site for more than eight years, and the campaign goes on. BAG has consistently argued that visitor facilities should be sited in villages - where there are already existing services and where economic benefits can accrue to the local populations - and not in the sensitive core area of the Burren National Park.
The Outlandish World of the Burren: In Pictures and Words
The site of the interpretative centre before the car park and the partially completed centre were built, The above photograph appears in the 2nd revised edition of The Book of the Burren by the locally based publisher Tír Eolas. A chapter entitled 'Ordinary People and the Mountain' by Burren Action Group member Lelia Doolan remembers the 10 year struggle.
The updated edition of The Book of the Burren, described as an indispensable vademecum for the visitor to North Clare by critics, looks at some of the new and old problems, and new insights into this unique landscape. The additional chapters consider farming practices, tourism, planning and development issues, new insights into flora, fauna, and archaeology, as well as poetry, spiritualism, arts, and crafts.
The Outlandish World of the Burren is a bestselling guide book on the Burren. It contains over 40 colour and black-and-white photographs and a thought-provoking text by Cyril Ó Céirín, which contributes significantly to an understanding of this unique limestone area of North Clare, Ireland.
Also available from Rathbane Publishing, rathbane@iol.ie in English, and as "Die sonderbare Welt des Burren" in German.
and as the now restored site will soon look again. (Photo © Nutan)
The book also remembers some of the visionary souls who have passed on during the past few years.