9 Flora, Fauna and Fisheries
9.8 Summary and Conclusions
There
are 14 designated conservation areas for flora and fauna within
the study area. One of these is a proposed candidate Special
Area of Conservation (pcSAC), and 13 are proposed Natural
Heritage Areas (pNHA). River Barrow and River Nore pcSAC cuts
across the south-western corner of the study area and any
crossing of this 7km stretch of the River Nore should be avoided.
As most of the pNHAs are small and have a scattered distribution,
it should be possible to avoid any direct impact on these
sites. In the case of a pcSAC, projects that are likely to
have a significant adverse impact on the integrity of the
site may only be carried out for "imperative reasons of
overriding public interest, including those of a social or
economic nature".
Consultations
with Dúchas, the Heritage Service will be required if any
pNHAs are affected by this scheme.
There are 124
additional ecological sites in the study area. These are concentrated
in upland areas and along river corridors, but scattered sites
have a more widespread distribution. Most of these ecological
sites are comparatively small and should be avoided where
possible. If sites cannot be avoided then mitigation will
be required.
Numerous watercourses
occur in the study area and most of these are important for
fisheries. The River Barrow dissects the study area from north
to south and will have to be crossed by the proposed road
at some point. Particular attention will be required in the
selection of crossing points for any watercourse to avoid,
where possible, designated conservation areas, other ecological
sites and stretches of the channel that are of high fisheries
value and/or contain protected freshwater species listed in
Annex II of the EU Habitats Directive.
All river and
stream crossings should be treated with care and should be
the subject of consultation with the Southern Regional Fisheries
Board. Single span bridges for rivers and bottomless culverts
for streams are recommended as they have the least impact
on fish and macro-invertebrate populations, and on the stream
or river habitat.
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