Two images take precedence this week : the boat gallery which is being developed by the National Museum at its Country Life section in Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co.Mayo and the WATERS OF LIFE project.
Turlough Park about eight miles from Castlebar in County Mayo where the National Museum, through its Irish Folklife Division, operates the Country Life Museum. This collects and preserves material culture from Ireland’s traditional way of life, of which the maritime sphere is, of course, a major part …. It is a fascinating place. where Assistant Keeper Noel Campbell is developing a BOAT GALLERY. He describes the work to me on the current (October) edition of MARITIME IRELAND, which you can hear if you go across to the PODCAST here on the website. It is the second story on the programme. He outlines how he hopes to develop the project and how he is obtaining information and contributions from around the coast.
THE WATERS OF LIFE
Anne Goggin is the Project Manager of ‘Waters of LIFE’ a €20m. project to improve and protect Irish rivers and this is the focus of the second image this week. The quality of water in our rivers and lakes has been deteriorating in recent years,” she says, leading the €20m. project, the purpose of which is to halt and correct that deterioration.
“The aim is to address and reverse this trend of deterioration. Agriculture, forestry, peat extraction, quarrying, domestic wastewater treatment systems, will all be part of the work. These have the greatest impact on water bodies. Changes to the physical structure of rivers, sediment accumulation, over-enrichment by nutrients, are other risks.”
Rivers are vital to life, essential in our homes, central to much of industry, feed source to our estuaries. Clean water is of huge importance.
Go to the Podcast of the September edition of MARITIME IRELAND to hear Anne Goggin discuss the project.
