Six Mayo nominees for Ireland’s Greenest Places 2025 awards
MAYO has secured half a dozen nominations on the longlist of Ireland’s Greenest Places 2025 and as a result all six are in contention to win a category award and potentially the overall title of Ireland’s Greenest Place 2025.
It’s the joint highest number of nominees secured by any county, with Dublin also securing six nominations.
The six Mayo locations are the village of Louisburgh, the towns of Ballina and Kiltimagh, the communities of Gaelscoil Raifteiri in Castlebar, Inishturk island and Fahburren Forrest near Croagh Patrick.
The six were among over 120 projects or places put forward by members of the public from all over the country and amongst 17 entries submitted from people in Mayo.
Five towns made the long list and as a result Ballina and Kiltimagh will be going up against one another and also with Killarney in Kerry, Abbeyleix in Co. Laois and Skerries in Dublin for the title of Greenest Town.
Five villages also made the long list, and, in this category, Louisburgh will be up against two Clare villages, Inagh and Quin, as well as Castlegregory/Maharees in Kerry and Cloughjordan Ecovillage in Co. Tipperary for the title of Greenest Village.
Gaelscoil Raifteiri, Inishturk and Fahburren Forrest were selected in the community category. In all, 13 communities made the long list, making it the most challenging category in the competition.
Ireland’s Greenest Places 2025, an initiative which is being run by The Irish Times in association with Electric Ireland, began in late May when members of the public were invited to nominate a special place or project which they believe contributes to a genuinely greener environment.
The chair of the judging panel, Irish Times Features Editor Mary Minihan said they had been hugely impressed by the quality and diversity of the environmental projects being undertaken around the country.
“It was extremely difficult for us to come up with the long list and we spent many hours reviewing and debating the entries. But that is a real compliment to the excellent quality of the work being done in the projects and the places which were nominated. So, congratulations to the 26 projects who made it on the long list but also to everyone who entered and is doing such valuable work,” she said.
The shortlist for Ireland’s Greenest Places 2025 will be announced at the end of the month with the category winners and overall winner announced a fortnight later.
THE MAYO NOMINEES
Louisburgh is becoming an important environmental hub, extending to Clare and Inishturk islands, says James Ryan, but driven by sustainability and careful planning.
There is major emphasis on public awareness of climate and biodiversity issues and solutions - and especially local food production, he adds, with 96 gardeners “sharing info, swapping plants and seedlings while also partnering in an organic vegetable farm project with a weekly stall”.
Emma Donoghue, manager of Ballina’s Mary Robinson Centre, says the true heart of any town lies in the strength of its community and the dedication of its volunteers. She says Ballina has become a trailblazer of green initiatives across climate, biodiversity and the scaling up of renewables by putting an emphasis on community engagement and through the work of a wide array of local groups.
Gary Smyth describes Kiltimagh’s new 6.5-acre diversity park that promotes trees, flora and fauna as the new green beating heart of the town. He also points out that the River Pollagh which flows through the town is a Bluedot river, meaning it’s one of the highest quality rivers in the country.
“Our community is deeply invested in protecting and enhancing our natural heritage.”
Michelle Uí Charraig, a teacher in Gaelscoil Raifteirí in Castlebar, says the pupils love growing plants with other classes and selling their plants to the community. They then use that money to buy more resources to grow again the following year.
Three students from Rang 5, Tríona, Maggie and Finn, contributed to the school’s entry.
“We are the future. In a few years’ time us kids will be adults, and we need to know not just how to grow food but how to live sustainably. No one knows how the future will be, and we need to be able to gather our resources and use what is available to us. It's important that we keep our environment clean for the future,” they say.
Inisturk also made the long list in the community category and Aoife O’Toole, who proposed it, says the community has endeavoured to implement environmentally safe practices for many years in order to preserve and enhance its beautiful landscape and protect its natural ecosystems.
Just some of the measures include the drawing up of a community biodiversity five-year action plan, membership of the West Connacht Island Invasive Species Eradication Project and an energy masterplan.
Fahburren Forrest, which is almost in the shadows of Croagh Patrick, has been wooded for centuries. In the early 2000s a new native woodland was established in unwooded land, extending the ancient deciduous woodland under Department of Agriculture guidance; in effect creating a natural corridor to a kilometre wide that has become 'a thriving temperate Atlantic rainforest'.
Fahburren Forest is a notable 'citizen-driven rewilding', in line with national biodiversity aspirations, says Patrick Slevin, who is leading the ecological transformation.
With the help of farming neighbours, it “marks a profound behavioural change: from livestock farming to active conservation, prioritising native biodiversity and long-term ecosystem recovery. The environmental impact is demonstrable.”
The shortlist for Ireland’s Greenest Places 2025 will be announced at the end of the month with the category winners and overall winner announced a fortnight later.