Seafield has a rich and varied biodiversity both onshore and offshore. It is for this reason the area is located within the Carrowmore Point to Spanish Point and Islands Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and within the Mid-Clare Coast Special Protection Area under the E.U. Birds Directive (SPA).
Winter is an excellent time for bird watching in Seafield. If you are out and about in the morning, you will spot a myriad of bird species enjoying an ‘a la carte’ breakfast along the shore. Plenty of nutritious insects to be found among the rotting seaweed. Migratory birds have been coming to the area for millennia. You might say they are our original tourists!
What are the legal implications of SAC and SPA designations?
Essentially, areas designated SAC or SPA are protected areas for both habitats and species with strict controls governing the nature and extent of activities that may take place within these areas.
The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) is responsible for the designation of conservation sites in Ireland. Individuals, groups, companies or other organisations who wish to undertake development work or engage in activities within a SAC or SPA, may require ministerial consent or planning permission and may be required to undertake environmental screening of the proposed work to assess whether there is potential for a significant impact on the designated site. Thus, development within designated sites is very strictly regulated.
For example, as the beaches and areas of sand dunes lie within a Carrowmore Point to Spanish Point Special Area of Conservation, anyone wishing to carry out commercial or organised recreational activities would require ministerial consent from NPWS and may have to undertake environmental screening to assess to what extent such activities might negatively impact the habitats in Seafield. Such activities are referred to as Activities Requiring Consent (ARCs).
The Mid-Clare Coast Special Protection Area (SPA 004182) has a list of activities which require consent from the Minister if no other permission is required i.e. planning.
One of those activities is “developing, operating or allowing leisure or sporting activities liable to cause significant disturbance to those birds listed in Schedule 3 of these Regulations or damage to their habitats”.
Seafield Conservation Forum cooperates fully with NPWS guidelines to ensure that conservation activities undertaken by our group first goes through environmental screening. Only when permission is granted to proceed, does the group carry out conservation work on protected habitats. We have received permission from the NPWS to undertake our schedule of conservation activities for 2025.