BÚAN_ fund is pleased to declare its support for this spectacular 17.83 hectare site in the beautiful county of Kerry. The first of many that we have stacked and ready to go.

With the agreement of the landowners we are minting this land to our treasury. We will have completed a baseline environmental survey identifying the habitats and species present soon. So far we have collated 117 species of flora, fauna and wildlife. We have also started the process of commissioning a high resolution map that will allow people to explore the site in detail from our treasury explorer.

Situated near the mouth of the Kenmare River, the location falls inside a dark sky reserve, close to Killarney National Park. The Kenmare river is a designated Special Area of Conservation that attracts a wealth of biodiversity. The area as a whole is home to protected species including birds such as Sand Martin, Wheatear, Mew Gulls, Gannets, Shag and Oyster Catchers. Also close by is some of Ireland’s last remaining ancient woodland in Dromore and another sliver called Mucksna Wood.

The Site Specific Stewardship Agreement sets out the details of how the site will be managed for the first two years.

• Maintenance and improvement of existing hedgerows.

• Exclusion of livestock especially sheep with fencing to allow nature to regenerate.

• Removal of invasive species such as Rhododendron and Gunnera.

• Establishment of a tree nursery for the production of native woodland species.

• Afforestation of patches throughout the property using the Miwayaki method.

The perimeter of the property measures just over two kilometres with hundreds of metres of hedgerow and existing fencing that we will improve and maintain. To allow natural regeneration to take place we want to ensure the exclusion of livestock and other browser species.

Where invasive species such as Rhododendron and Gunnera exist we will eliminate them and ensure that they do not return. As ever the first step will be to map exactly where they are to provide transparency and ensure that they are managed going forward.

We are also proposing to establish a one acre tree nursery that in coming years will be able to regenerate up to thirty hectares of land with the trees grown there. Seeds will be collected from the surrounding area to ensure that they are native. The seedlings propagated here will be more resilient to harsh conditions and better able to survive once they are planted out in the open.

Depending on the conditions and habitats present throughout the plot we will afforest small areas following the Miyawaki method. This will require us to thoroughly prepare the land and plant more trees than traditional methods but results in much faster growing and dense pockets of forest that support up to one hundred times greater biodiversity. Given the small area needed it will also be much easier to protect from browser species such as deer.

We are working on a detailed map of the property to inform budgeting for the above actions as soon as possible and look forward to seeing if we can expand this initiative into the wider community to include neighbouring properties too.

Phase One; Mapping

Through the combination of Land Registry Records and aerial imagery we have established the bounds of the property and measured the perimeter. We have drawn up a list of more than one hundred flora, fauna, plant and animal species recorded in the area. In the coming weeks we will keep developing our maps of the property to highlight the different areas relevant to the proposed framework of proposed works. With the permission of the landowners we would also like to install some trail cameras to create a record of wildlife in the area.

Phase Two; Costing

Costing all of the relevant works that need to be carried out will be a process of determining what we can achieve through our network and external help that may need to be brought in to complete. Using the information gleaned from the mapping phase in combination with the costs we will update the Site Specific Stewardship Agreement and raise the funds needed.

Phase Three; Implementation

As much as we would like to go ahead and plant as many trees as possible and call it a forest - we first need to ensure that seedlings will not be immediately devoured by deer, rabbits and livestock that might come across them. So our first priorities will be to remove invasive species and enforce the perimeter of the property where necessary. Smaller areas will be much easier and more economical to protect reliably from animals.

One of the highest impact things that we can do also requires relatively little space - establishing the tree nursery. We will gather seeds from the local area to ensure their provenance and suitability. Some stems may be sold to cover expenses related to the property. Later we can use the trees from the nursery for afforestation of prepared, well protected areas.

Phase Four; Ongoing funding

BÚAN_ fund will provide ongoing support for the good stewardship of the property and any further activities that the landowners or the wider community would like to pursue in support of expanding biodiversity.

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This is a really exciting first phase for the project and its a real privilege to be contributing to the enhancement of such a large site in this magnificent corner of Kerry in such close proximity to Killarney National Park, the Kenmare SAC and others.

Once the orthomosaic mapping is complete we will mint the plot to our treasury and start fundraising. Closing the loop between society and nature by having businesses share their certificates of impact, is going to help their customers allign their spending with their values in the next phase of our development.