Tyrella sand dunes facing beach to get thousands of native grasses to prevent erosion
Lecale Conservation, an environmental group in the wider Downpatrick area, has been restoring degraded beaches around Lecale for the last eight years.
It has done this with the permission of Newry Mourne and Down Council and the Department of the Environment (DAERA).
Lecale Conservation visited Kilclief village’s True Harvest Seeds at the weekend to present £1800 raised by Lecale Conservation for this local charity to help continue its work improving our local beaches.
Project leader and Lecale Conservation treasurer, Downpatrick Councillor Cadogan Enright, said: “The gathering of seeds and growing-on the different native plants needed to restore sand dunes is a specialist job.
“We are lucky to have Debbie Gillies and her charity True Harvest to do this for us.
“Funds raised today will grow another 700 plants and promote about 100 metres of new sand dunes.
“We have also persuaded Newry Mourne and Down District Council to support the project and order thousands of plants to restore Tyrella Beach as well.”
Lecale Conservation Chair John Peacock said: “We use posts and fences to protect the front edge of the dunes from footfall or motorised vehicles.
“This gives the new plants a chance to re-establish the front side of the dune systems.
“Once the new front edge of the dunes is established, erosion is gradually stopped. The plants help retain the sand in place. Sand-dune systems are a vitally important habitat for local wildlife.
“We will need lots of volunteers to help plant out the new plants this Autumn and next spring. If you want to volunteer, then place contact Lecale Conservation Association on Facebook.”
Debbie Gillies of True Harvest Seeds said: “Without the funds raised by Lecale Conservation over the last few years it would have been nigh impossible to have grown the thousands of plants we have provided to projects at the different beaches in our area.
“This is very specialist work and requires permission of Council and DAERA as we are dealing with native wild plants in sensitive areas.
“True Harvest in Kilclief is a charity that focuses on preserving and propagating a wide range of local and endangered plants native to Ireland.
“Volunteers are welcome to help or to fund-raise for this practical on-the-ground local environmental charity.”
“We have to ‘think global but act local’ to tackle the world-wide environmental challenge facing our generation,” added Debbie Gillies.
