Topic: PETITION : Provide adequate funding for the Mourne AONB (Read 5349 times)

admin · « **on:** May 23, 2015 »

Mourne Heritage Trust needs your help. We have been on the end of a huge cut to our budgets. A letter from the Department of the Environment explains that funding from Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) will cease from 30th June 2015. This amounts to a 75% cut in the funding from NIEA for 2015/16 and means that as of the 1st July 2015 NIEA will have no financial provision for management of the Mourne Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Not only was the AONB designation made by government but the Agency established Mourne Heritage Trust in 1997 to meet an identified need for locally based management. While we appreciate the difficult public funding situation our government is in, we are astonished that NIEA would propose to walk away from our very successful partnership at a time when recreation in and appreciation of the Mournes has never been more popular.

If this funding cut is not mitigated our ability to provide the basic visitor services around infrastructure like pathways, amenity sites, car parks and control of litter and erosion will be constrained. Our work to protect and enhance biodiversity will suffer. And we have over £1 million in offers of funding from sources like the Heritage Lottery, BIG Lottery, Interreg and Arts Council for heritage projects and these are jeopardised by the loss of core funding.

The Mournes is an asset for tourism, recreation, education, and health and well-being.

Environmental groups face huge cuts to budgets
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-32068180

If you would like to read up about the work we do visit
http://www.mournelive.com

Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/mournelive

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http://twitter.com/Mournelive

Please help us keep it the way you love it by signing this petition:
https://www.change.org/p/minister-of-the-environment-permanent-secretary-department-of-the-environment-provide-adequate-funding-for-the-mourne-aonb?just_created=true

Rich.H · « **Reply #1 on:** May 23, 2015 »

I guess this is where some of that 12.8bn the Tories intend to skim will come from then.

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Author Topic: PETITION : Provide adequate funding for the Mourne AONB (Read 5349 times)

admin

PETITION : Provide adequate funding for the Mourne AONB

Rich.H

Re: PETITION : Provide adequate funding for the Mourne AONB

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