It isn't every day that a new island comes into being, but yesterday two new ones were unveiled on Dublin's coastline.
The two small specks of land have been created in Booterstown nature reserve to provide roosting and nesting areas for the sanctuary's vast bird population.
The islands are formed of fill material excavated by Dún Laoghaire/Rathdown County Council during roadworks on the adjoining Rock Road. The council has also built a viewing platform for birdwatchers, located opposite the junction of Trimlestown Road and Rock Road.
An Taisce, which manages the reserve, and Friends of Booterstown yesterday held an open day to mark the completion of the works.
"For some time now there has been a roosting crisis for the wild birds in the sanctuary, as the existing little mound could not accommodate the needs of the waders, herons, swans and ducks," Veronica Heywood, of the Dún Laoghaire branch of An Taisce, said.
"There was also a loss of habitat for the great variety of plants that grew in the reserve, and a dire necessity for a viewing hide," Ms Heywood said.
An Taisce was entirely satisfied with the works carried out by the council, which were the subject of controversy over the summer.
"People mistakenly thought some developer had taken over the reserve or that it was being used as a tiphead, but this was when the work wasn't finished."
Coastwatch Ireland claimed unsuitable material such as waste bitumen had been used in the landfill. Yesterday, Ms Heywood said this had happened because "over-enthusiastic" lorry drivers hadn't understood what was at issue.
Marcella Murphy, senior resident engineer with the council, said pipes, wires, bituminous and other unsuitable material had been sifted out of the fill, and excess material had been removed as the islands were originally built too high. Currently, the islands are bare but it is hoped they will eventually be fertilised with wind-blown plant seeds.
Ms Heywood said interested groups would be invited to a workshop next year to formulate a management plan for the reserve.
While the works in the reserve have been completed, motorists will have to put up with traffic delays resulting from the roadworks until November, according to Cllr Eugene Regan, cathaoirleach of the council. A quality bus corridor currently being constructed as part of the roadworks would not be made operational until Dublin Bus provided more buses, he warned.
The Booterstown nature reserve, initially created by the construction of a railway line in the 1830s, was made suitable for agricultural use from the 1870s by way of a water regulation system.
That system was abandoned in the 1950s, and the area developed into a natural haven for a variety of bird life.
It was leased by An Taisce in the 1970s.
