Development plan · Cork County Council
Cork County Development Plan 2022–2028 – Volume One: Main Policy Material
The council's development plan written statement: its strategy, policies, objectives and development standards. Variations adopted since are not in this text.
Cork County Council · 2022–2028 · 564 pages
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- 221 10.15.3 Tourism–related developments and facilities are ideally located inside existing settlements where the scale and size of the development is appropriate and in keeping with the character of the settlement and surrounding landscape subject to normal site suitability considerations. It is acknowledged that some tourist facilities are required to locate in rural areas in proximity to the tourist attraction where there is a clearly defined need and benefits to the local community are balanced with the potential environmental impacts of the development. 10.15.4 Integrated tourist facilities at a sub-county level will result in the provision of a more diverse range of visitor attractions, encourage longer visitor stays, help extend the visitor season and add to the quality of life for people who live in the area. 10.15.5 The absence of a conference facility has long been a major deficit in Cork’s business and tourism infrastructure and may be a factor in the below average business trips to both the County and City of Cork. Plans for a facility in the city have been delayed. County Council will continue to engage positively with the City Council to help deliver this facility for the wider Cork Area during the lifetime of the Plan. 10.15.6 The National Roads Authority (NRA) published the ‘Policy on The Provision of Tourist and Leisure Signage on National Roads’, in March 2011. The Policy is not intended to apply to national roads in towns and other built-up areas to which speed limits of 50 km/h or less apply. The regulation of signage in such areas is a matter for the planning authority. The ongoing upgrade and maintenance of directional signage, together with the continual rationalisation of white-on-brown signage used for tourist attractions and facilities, is making a significant improvement to the quality of national road signage throughout the country, benefiting both local and tourist alike. 10.15.7 Both the County Council and the NRA recognises the necessity to facilitate ready access to the many tourist destinations around the country. In this regard the sensitive improvement of access infrastructure and the provision of clear and consistent tourist signage is an essential element in assisting the motoring tourist to locate and access such attractions in a safe and efficient manner. The tourism signage policy will be implemented in consultation with local authorities, Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport, and Media, Fáilte Ireland, and other tourism interests in order to ensure the provision of appropriate signage for the principal tourist destinations. 10.15.8 Eco-tourism involves responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people. County Cork is well positioned to provide a high-quality tourism product which will contribute to the growth in tourism figures and the wider economic development of the County. County Development Plan Objective TO 10-10: Tourism Facilities a) Encourage tourism related facilities, including accommodation and other developments within existing settlements subject to normal site suitability considerations where they can best support compact growth and the regeneration of settlements, the provision of services and the general economic vitality of the settlement. b) Carefully consider tourism - related developments outside settlements at an appropriate scale and balance having regard to the pertaining environmental conditions and sensitivities, scenic amenity, availability of services and the cumulative impact of such developments on the environment. c) Support sustainable environmentally sensitive small-scale tourism enterprises including Agri-tourism enterprises and other initiatives that are developed in conjunction with established rural activities such as, fishing, walking, cycling, mountain biking, surfing, equestrian sports and other activities where these are compatible with environmental legislation. A limited amount of tourist accommodation could be included in association with such enterprises subject generally to the renovation of existing structures or redundant agricultural farm buildings as well as limited new buildings on an appropriate scale (new structures will have regard to the policies of Chapter 5 Rural). d) Encourage and facilitate the delivery of suitably scaled tourism related retail developments and initiatives in settlements and established tourist attractions where these are compatible with environmental legislation. e) Support the leisure fishing industry and continue to support golf tourism as positive growth sectors in the sustainable economic development of the County while also maintaining the integrity of the landscape and environment of the county as a valuable asset into the future. f) Encourage the provision of small scale agri tourism accommodation and the reuse of disused/derelict farm buildings, in line with the provisions of objectives RP 5-28 Small Scale Agri Tourism Accommodation and RP5-31 New uses for disused or derelict farm buildings. 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- 222 10.16 Managing the Provision of Tourist Accommodation 10.16.1 Tourism can generate great benefits to the local economy, and it is considered appropriate to maintain, improve and where proven necessary increase the provision of good quality accommodation for visitors and encourage longer stays while ensuring the delivery of a sustainable tourism strategy. 10.16.2 The types of tourism accommodation differ and depends on many different variables from cost, experience, location etc. The Council recognises there is a need to provide varied types of visitor accommodation to allow for the tourism sector to continue to grow around the county. The types of accommodation seen in Cork are Hotels, Hostels, Bed and Breakfasts, Short Term Lettings, Glamping, Camping, and other various forms of accommodation. 10.16.3 Camping and Glamping are a form of accommodation that are growing in popularity in Ireland in recent years and are an experience in themselves and the development of such facilities cam provide more accommodation / experience options for tourists. This type of accommodation can be visually obtrusive on the landscape if not correctly sited and landscaped and should be encouraged to locate where possible within settlement boundaries. Smaller scale developments will be also considered outside of settlement boundaries on farm holdings, see Chapter 5 Rural for further details. 10.16.4 The Motor Home market in Ireland is relatively small in comparison to other European countries. However, Fáilte Ireland has highlighted that Motor Home tourism is a growing market in Ireland which is insufficiently catered for and therefore has opportunities to develop. Increased demand for such facilities was also evident during the Covid-19 pandemic. Cork County Council published a motor home policy paper in 2018 ‘The Development of Motorhome Services in County Cork’’. It noted that, in 2015, only 4% of holiday makers from overseas used Caravan and Camping Accommodation during their stay. There are a number of Caravan parks in West Cork and in the Bandon-Kinsale Municipal Districts but notably there is no such service in North Cork. Although these caravan parks can be visually obtrusive if not carefully positioned within a town or landscape, North Cork has the potential for this niche tourism to grow within settlement boundaries along with the growing activity-based tourism in this area. The Motorhome Policy 2018 is now under review (Q2 2022) and will consider the latest best practice in the development of motorhome facilities. In Cork currently, the Five-Foot Way motorhome facility in Cobh, provided by Cork County Council, is considered a best practice example. 10.17 Tourism Potential of Demesnes and Estates 10.17.1 Any development proposal sited within or adjacent to a historic or culturally significant garden, a demesne or a landscaped estate should include a detailed appraisal of the site. Details on the methodology for preparing an appropriate site appraisal can be found in the “Guidance Notes for the Appraisals of Historic Gardens, Demesnes, Estates and their Settings” prepared by Cork County Council in 2005. County Development Plan Objective TO 10-11: Tourist Accommodation Generally to encourage holiday accommodation to locate within established settlement boundaries and that such development relates sympathetically to the scale and level of development and facilities in the locality. Support the development of commercial motorhome camping facilities, with due regard to the planning and regulatory requirements for such facilities. Emphasis will be placed on developing facilities within settlement boundaries in areas of the County that currently have a lack of suitable facilities. GO TO CONTENTS
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- 225 CHAPTER 11 WATER MANAGEMENT Aim of Chapter The provision and improvement of water, wastewater, surface water and flood alleviation services so as to facilitate development, support the delivery of population, housing and growth targets and prioritised so as to protect public health and protect, restore and improve the receiving environment and water quality.
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- 227 CONTENTS Contents 11.1 Introduction 228 11.2 Water Framework Directive 228 11.3 River Basin Management Planning 228 11.4 Irish Water Plans and Programmes 234 11.5 Capacity of the Receiving Water Environment 235 11.6 Overall Strategy for Water Services 237 11.7 Water Services Capacity 237 11.8 Drinking Water 239 11.9 Wastewater Disposal 240 11.10 Surface Water 241 11.11 Flooding 243
- 228 11.1 Introduction 11.1.1 Water is a fundamental building block of life and therefore the quality of the water we use in our daily lives is of huge significance to, not only our physical wellbeing but is also critical to our economic wellbeing. The Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, seeks to integrate the development plan process and water management through the requirement for Development Plans to have regard to the water services strategic plan for the area and to support the protection and enhancement of water quality, and compliance with environmental standards and objectives regarding water quality. 11.1.2 Cork County Council has responsibility for the protection of all waters in the County. The Council also has an important role to play in the protection, maintenance, and improvement of water quality through the planning and management of future development. 11.1.3 This Plan takes account of the full water cycle in a holistic approach that acknowledges the need to integrate policies across multiple areas to ensure the most effective regime to protect and improve the water environment. 11.2 Water Framework Directive 11.2.1 The Water Framework Directive (WFD) is a key initiative aimed at protecting and improving water quality throughout the EU. The WFD was adopted in 2000 and requires governments to implement management measures in their waters (rivers, canals, lakes, reservoirs, groundwater, protected areas (including wetlands and other water dependent ecosystems), estuaries (transitional) and coastal waters up to 1 nautical mile) so as to achieve good ecological status or restore high status. 11.2.2 The WFD requires the status of water bodies to be classified as high, good, moderate, poor or bad and the status is defined with respect to its biology, chemistry, quantity and morphology. It is the stated aim to achieve, through coordinated action, good status for all waters or restore high status. The WFD brings water related directives under one framework, including those dealing with bathing water, waters used for the abstraction of drinking waters, wastewater disposal and the protection of environmentally significant aquatic species (shellfish and freshwater fish). 11.2.3 The WFD necessitates an integrated approach to managing water quality on a river basin or catchment basis, with the aim of maintaining and improving water quality. It requires that management plans be prepared on a river basin basis in six-year cycles and specifies a structured approach to developing those plans. Ireland is committed to manage all waters through a catchment-based process, and the River Basin Management Plan is the mechanism for achieving this. Two key objectives of the WFD (1 ) to prevent the deterioration of water bodies and to protect, enhance and restore them with the aim of achieving at least good status and (2) to achieve compliance with the requirements for designated protected areas. 11.3 River Basin Management Planning 11.3.1 The quality of all water in County Cork, including surface waters (rivers and lakes, estuarine and coastal waters) and groundwater, represent an important ecological, recreational, economic, public health and aesthetic resource for the County. The quality of water can be easily damaged and is diffcult to restore leading to often widespread and long-term effects. 11.3.2 In accordance with the WFD, River Basin Management Planning revolves around a six-year planning cycle of action and review, so that every six years a revised river basin management plan (RBMP) is produced. When the second cycle RBMP was published, Ireland was two years behind the timeframes stipulated in the WFD, principally due to the major reform of the water sector at the time. Therefore, the current RBMP is in place for 4 rather than 6 years and covers the period 2018-2021. The first cycle of river basin management plans was produced on a River Basin Districts basis but the second cycle plan has been completed on the basis that Ireland is defined as a single River Basin District. 11.3.3 The current River Basin Management Plan uses an enhanced evidence base for the prioritising of measures. Some of the specific initiatives introduced in the current RBMP include: • Governance and delivery structures for an effective catchment-based approach. • Enhanced stakeholder and public engagement through the establishment of a Water Forum, the Local Authorities Water and Communities Office (LAWCO), since renamed Local Authorities Water Programme (LAWPRO) and www.catchments.ie and www.watersandcommunities.ie websites. • 190 Prioritised Areas for Action; 21 in Cork County • Protection for high status waters through the Blue Dot Catchments Programme GO TO CONTENTS
- 229 • Agricultural Sustainability Support and Advisory Service (ASSAP) • Improved controls for the management of water abstractions 11.3.4 The current RBMP through exercises to classify the status of waterbodies, characterise the risk of the water body not achieving high or good status, and identification of significant pressures, provides the evidence for the measures outlined in the Plan. 11.3.5 The programme of measures contains 15 key measures including planned investment in urban waste-water infrastructure, roll out of the National Inspection Plan 2018–21 for domestic waste-water treatment systems, implementation of EU regulation with regard to Invasive Alien Species (IAS), along with clear governance and coordination for tackling IAS, the establishment of a national register of water abstractions and the establishment of a “Blue Dot Catchments Programme” amongst others. 11.3.6 In the current RBMP, 21 Priority Areas for Action are identified in Cork County: Table 11.1 Priority Areas for Action in Cork County No. Priority Action Area No. Priority Action Area 1 Upper Deel 12 Owenboy 2 Awbeg (Buttevant) West 13 Bandon Estuary 3 Allow 14 Carrigadrohid 4 Farahy 15 Caha 5 Ogeen 16 Lough Allua 6 Upper Funshion 17 Clonakilty 7 Owentaraglin 18 Kilkerran Lagoon 8 Keel Foherish 19 Rosscarbery 9 Martin 20 Glan Stream 10 Lough Fadda/ Ownagappul 21 Adrigole 11 Midleton 11.3.7 Work on the preparation of the third cycle RBMP covering the period 2022-2027 is advanced and a draft of the plan has undergone public consultation with a view to having a final adopted plan in 2022. GO TO CONTENTS
- 230 11.3.8 There are 251 river water bodies in the County of which 45 or 18% were determined to be in the “High” status category, 152 or 60% were in the “Good” category, 39 or 16% were in the “Moderate” category and 15 or 6% were in the “Poor” category. The majority of river water bodies in the “Poor” category were located in the catchments of the Blackwater, Lee and Bandon Rivers. The presence of the Freshwater Pearl Mussel in the Blackwater, Bandon and Owenagappul Rivers imposes a higher river water quality standard which the rivers do not currently meet. Figure 11.1 Water Quality Status in Cork County for the period 2013-2018 Source: EPA – Catchments.ie website 11.3.9 The estuarine and coastal environments of the county are subject to a wide variety of pressures. The quality of Ireland’s tidal waters is determined by the composition of the waters of the North East Atlantic that bathe our coasts and the degree to which this is altered by inputs of organic matter, nutrients and other materials including contaminants from the land and atmosphere. 11.3.10 The implementation of the Plan will bring incremental improvement leading to the majority of waters reaching at least “good status” by 2027 at the latest, benefiting the whole community by providing long-term sustainable access to and use of those waters. Where waters are currently at less than good status, they must be improved until they reach good status and there must be no deterioration in the existing status of waters. 11.3.11 Cork County Council recognises the importance of supporting an integrated and collaborative approach to local catchment management which will assist in the more effective implementation of the RBMP and will support the activities of the Community Water Officers under the remit of the Local Authority Waters and Community Office in rolling out the local Authorities Waters Programme. Blue Dot Catchments 11.3.12 The substantial loss of High Status water bodies over the last few decades prompted the introduction of the Blue Dot Catchments Programme in the current River Basin Management Plan. The programme is focused on the targeting of resources with the aim of protecting, and where possible, restoring high ecological status. Actions under the programme include development of community led catchment initiatives and promotion of uptake of grant schemes such as the native woodland scheme and the upgrading of septic tanks (under the Housing (Domestic Waste Water Treatment Systems Financial Assistance in High Status Objective Catchment Areas) Regulations 2020 (S.I. No. 186 of 2020). There are a significant number of blue dot catchments in the County. National Planning Framework 11.3.13 The National Planning Framework places sustainable management of water as a National Strategic Outcome 9 and similarly Water Infrastructure is cited as one of the ten Strategic Investment Priorities for the National Development Plan. Water quality and the need for water infrastructure is expanded upon under National Policy Objective 63 with the stated objective to ensure the efficient and sustainable use and development of water resources and water services infrastructure. 11.3.14 Appendix 3 of the NPF outlines a methodology for a tiered approach to residential land zoning which includes an assessment of water services infrastructure. See Chapter 2 Core Strategy for further information on the application of this approach. GO TO CONTENTS
Source Cork County Council: Cork County Development Plan 2022–2028 – Volume One: Main Policy Material (2022–2028) · Licence the publisher's termsText read from the publisher’s PDF; tables, maps and drawings do not survive as text, and page numbers are the PDF’s (its first page is 1). Check the original before relying on a passage.