The Heritage Council Annual Report 2002

· the Offaly & Kildare Waterways project provides a model for enabling
local communities to engage in the planning required and for creating
political will to support environmental protection.
St. Brendan’s Cathedral, Clonfert, Co. Galway
Work on Clonfert cathedral continued in 2002, supported by funding from the
Heritage Council. Work carried out during the year included the stabilisation of the
South Transept, lime mortar repairs to the Romanesque doorway, and improvements
to the surface water drainage around the doorway.
The Doorway of St. Brendan’s Cathedral, Clonfert, Co. Galway – Funded by the
Heritage Council in 2002
Dromore Bat Roost
The Heritage Council purchased a building in 1998 which supports the largest known
colony of Lesser Horseshoe bats in Ireland. Following the commissioning of a
management plan for the site, the Heritage Council has initiated a programme of
ongoing monitoring and research into the habitat requirement of the bats. This project,
undertaken by Ms Sinead Biggan and under the supervision of Dr. James Dunne of
NUI Galway, uses radio-telemetry to track bat movements away from the roost at
night. The results of the work will allow the Heritage Council to make
recommendations for the favourable management of the entire feeding range of the
bats using the roost.