Hillwalking Bill launched today

Posted on April 06, 2007 at 12:22 PM

AccesstotheCountryside

No doubt over the Easter break tens of thousands of hillwalkers will take the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful Irish countryside.

All land in Ireland is owned by private individuals, groups of people in commonage or by the State such as Coillte, the ESB or National Parks.

There isn't any clear status as to what land is accessible or what the rights of way are from the public road to the uplands where most recreational walkers want to go. As a result there have been a number of stand-off confrontations and disputes between walkers and landowners.

Today we have launched an innovative, creative and constructive legal framework to provide certainty and security for both landowners and recreational walkers. And in Government we will implement this.

The main features of the Bill include:

* Designating all land 150 metres above sea level as 'public access land'
* Landowners to be indemnified against injury or accidents on their land
* Access routes to be provided to access land
* Amenities to be provided and paid for by Local Authorities
* Establishment of an Access to the Countryside Advisory Council

You can read Ruairi's statment here, Liz's statement here and Eamon's here and more on the document here.

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