Donegal will play host this week to delegates from Norway and the Basque Region of Spain are as part of the EU funded HERICOAST project.
The initiative is about looking at best practice in terms of managing coastal heritage when developing the coastal landscape.
Donegal County Council is one of seven partners participating in the project and this week delegates the two country’s are visiting Donegal to learn more about the methodology used in the county to undertake and inform the Seascape Character Assessment.
Norway has received additional funding to undertake a Seascape Character Assessment akin to that prepared by Donegal County Council, and which has been identified as a best practice example by the EU Interreg project.
The purpose of the visit is to learn in more detail the methodology used in Donegal to undertake and inform the Seascape Character Assessment of Vest-Agder, a Region of Norway.
The Basque Region of Spain has been funded to learn in more detail how the evidence-based assessment is used to inform projects and assessments.
Cathaoirleach Cllr. Seamus O’Domhnaill met the delegates during their visit to Donegal which included workshops and a half-day field visit around Lough Swilly.
Cllr. O’Domhnaill said that he was delighted to welcome these delegates to Donegal and to share with them learning acquired from the work undertaken by Donegal County Council.
“Donegal has a coastline of 1,134km and boasts a diverse coastal landscape mirroring that of the country which includes cliffs, sandy beaches, inhospitable rocky shores, inlets, headlands, islands, ports, harbours and seaside towns”,” he said.
“We have a network of thriving coastal towns, villages and clachans and there are 99 coastal settlements and many more small clusters and communities around our coast and developing the appropriate tools and techniques to manage and preserve of coastal heritage and landscapes is a priority for us as a Council,” he added.
“I am delighted that we are in a position to share this with you.
‘I hope that the learning you take from your visit to Donegal will help guide and inform your own work in both Norway and the Basque Region.”
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