Fast facts  Raw Sewage outflow occurs across from St Albans/Strand Road 10-12x per year Discharge pumps respond to high water level to avoid flooding at St Albans residential area Raw Sewage released is unfiltered with condoms and sanitary products left deposited on the beach amongst faeces Creates an immediate Public Health Hazard to Dublin Bay Sandymount & Merrion Beach Sandymount & Merrion Beach is used by 100s of walkers, pedestrians per day There is no/inadequate public signage of the hazard There is no clean-up operation triggered by DCC or Irish Water It can take + 2 weeks to clean up after each event Correspondence has been formally exchanged with DCC CEO on incidents dating back to 03/06/2022 c/w photographic evidence of the extent of beach erosion and evidence of health hazard and lack of clean-up A complaint to EPA was formally filed 03/11 2022 with all back-up and Irish Water formally closed out the complaint 16/11/2022 The event of 11/05/2023 carries video evidence of the flow and the aftermath on the beach, widely reported on the media Irish Water are responsible for this system BUT carry no responsibility for Clean Up DCC do not accept responsibility for clean-up below the High Water line and will only clean-up on a limited discretionary requested basis on the Strand There is clear acceptance by our agencies of Dublin City Council and Irish Water of the creation of a Public Health Hazard with no effort made to provide signage or clean-up services It is asserted that Ireland’s agencies including the EPA have become normalised to the acceptance of this status on Ireland’s capital city beach – and are prepared to leave the public at risk to this hazard Notes from meeting with Uisce Eireann, Deputy James Geoghegan TD and SAMRA , 4 TH February 2026 Attendees Deputy James Geoghegan TD SAMRA: David Turner - Chair Karl Anderson - Strategic Communications and Media UISCE EIREANN Steve Seymour – Head of Asset Management Ted O’Reilly – Asset Planning Senior Manager Michael Goss – Wastewater Network Manager AGENDA 1. Extent of Current BioHazard · Number of people, children and pets exposure on the city beach · Raw sewage to beach, media : video, pictures (as per SAMRA website) · Dublin Bay (UNESCO Biosphere and the only associated with a capital city) a previous Blue Flag beach - now the 2nd worst performing in the state 2. What is the Plan to STOP the pollution at St Albans outfall ? Opportunity : Inclusion into the promenade flood alleviation scope 3. Immediately Available Actions to Uisce Éireann Signage Clean-up 4. As the Accountable Agency - WHAT IS Uisce Éireann's Commitment Project Timeline 3 decades on MEETING KEY POINTS James Geoghegan invited SAMRA to overview the context of why we’re here after his challenge to Uisce Eireaann (UE) Sean Laffey in the Dail PAC on 6th November SAMRA overviewed key context points commenting on UE opening slide of a St Albans flooding. The correct priority is in place to pump to the beach rather than flood residential home HOWEVER, the city UNESCO beach has become a toxic place and people, children, dogs are routinely getting sick AND this has been going on for 3 decades - what is UE plan ? UE spent 45 minutes explaining from an engineering perspective, why this a legacy issue and a very complex problem to resolve: development of the hydraulic model drainage area plan (DAP) needed to inform feasibility assessments and decisions: 2 years; due to be complete in 2026 for St Albans area For a 1:5 year storm, containment of St Albans upstream drainage area 45,000 people = 17,000m3 tank (9 Olympic swimming pools) and no identifiable storage site However, to set expectations there are 40-50 DAPs in progress across Ireland Also, to get through to a Capital Funded Plan - minimum 7-10 years (and probably more given the reference of the Blanchardstown plan which took 5 years on a greenfield site outside the complexity of Dublin) UE overviewed what they have/are doing with respect to St Albans: weir to reduce backflow improved pump system at Aylesbury improved telemetry for pump activation annunciation pump performance monitoring to avoid breakdowns DCC beach clean-up service to UE at present and staff will transfer to UE by the end of 2026 - increasing transparency UE response Priorities : response < 4hours for internal flooding to certain premises response < 12 hours for flooding to gardens & streets, etc UE confirmed that the above are all incremental and in reality we have minimum 7-10 years to wait with current status quo, to get to a solution - where residents meanwhile have to cope with toxic conditions We asked questions and discussed : possibility of running an extension pipe across the beach to eliminate the risk whilst engineering is underway in parallel - UE - planning permissions/delays incorporation of a local break tank: volume needed too high and space restrictions incorporation of a line into the upcoming flood defence works - will be explored with OPW and Jacobs exertion of external fines from EU - as with Cork impending, not clear this will make a difference exertion of political pressure - unclear In view of the above, we asked UE to consider how to minimise risk to people whilst the engineering is developed: Communication - there is currently NONE Signage - what is in place is INADEQUATE Clean-up - there is currently LITTLE OR NONE SUMMARY UE presented the complexity of the problem that they have inherited and are working through from an engineering perspective UE did not present any options of what they can do to mitigate risk to people UE did not make any commitments or present any mitigation plan at this meeting BUT they undertook to now consider mitigation options David Turner Chair SAMRA

SAMSEC is currently in the process of commissioning an Energy Management Plan for Sandymount. The Steering Committee has engaged Michael Hanratty of IHER as consultant to draw up this plan in co-operation with the committee, which will be funded by our SEAI Sustainable Energy Communities grant of 25,000 Euro. The Energy Management Plan will consist of an audit of energy use in Sandymount, together with a “Register of Opportunities”, or list of ways that residents, community groups and businesses can save energy and improve our area's carbon footprint. The focus will be on retrofitting houses. The Steering Committee has selected 15 homes as 'Domestic Participants, representative of Sandymount house types, to undergo various types of SEAI energy assessments. The reports will be published, anonymously, in the Energy Management Plan, so as to share all the useful practical information about retrofitting, with householders in similar properties. We also must finish selecting 12 non-domestic buildings, in community or commercial use, for energy assessments, and would welcome suggestions. Sandymount's Energy Management Plan should be published, and launched, in October or November. We also hope to join the 'Sustainable Energy Communities Buying Club' organised by CODEMA, City of Dublin Energy Management Agency, which is launching this autumn. This should greatly help to simplify the process for householders trying to organise grants and contractors for retrofitting their projects, large and small. We are very grateful to Gerard Doherty, our SEAI Sustainable Energy Communities mentor, for all his help and support.

Saturday 13th June 2026, Sandymount Village Green This event is being organised by Joseph Lynch, under the auspice of SAMRA (Sandymount and Merrion Residents Association) & in association with Dublin City Council & Sandymount Tidy Towns CoMMunity Association

VILLAGE IDEAS TIMELINE TO DATE The following is a brief summary of the Village Ideas from their inception to the present time. SAMRA is very grateful to the Dublin Waste to Energy Community Gain Liaison Committee for their very generous grants to fund the creation of the Village Ideas and the Community Engagement Programme. We wish to thank Grafton Architects for the commitment, enthusiasm, expertise and professionalism of their team over the course of the project. The consultations with Dublin City Council, from their Chief Executive, Richard Shakespeare and his senior officials have been enormously positive and we look forward to delivery on the projects over the coming years. CREATION OF THE VILLAGE IDEAS. In 2022 , during the trialling of the summer weekend pedestrianisation of the north-east side of the Green, SAMRA began to consider the issue of looking at the possibilities to improve the public realm of the village and its environs as a whole, including its links to Dublin Bay. The essence of our thoughts was to unlock the village’s enormous potential and further develop its relationship with the Bay. The context for this included the Sandymount Village Design Statement published in 2011, the 2015 designation of Dublin Bay as a UNESCO Biosphere and the Dublin City Development Plan 2022-2028. In the Plan, Sandymount is listed for the preparation of a Local Environmental Improvement Plan. The Plan also lists Sandymount as a 'Key Urban Neighbourhood' with policies to improve these villages for the wellbeing of their communities. We considered a very open brief for improvement of the area, and then requested the world renowned Dublin firm, Grafton Architects, to provide us with a proposal for a project to develop various ideas. Armed with their very enthusiastic response , in April 2023 , SAMRA applied to the Dublin Waste to Energy Community Gain Liaison Committee for a grant to fund the Architect's work and later that year, the Committee provided that grant. Over 9 months in 2024 , in liaison with a SAMRA Subcommittee that included a representative of STTCA, Grafton Architects created the ideas. The Grafton Architects Sandymount Village Ideas Presentation of Aug 2024 wonderfully illustrates an integrated holistic plan of ideas for a series of 12 projects to improve the public realm under the key initiatives. In addition, they developed ideas for a number of small moves that would significantly enhance the village including improved signage, additional seating, planting, and interpretive story boards A number of the main project ideas were subsequently developed as priorities for early delivery. CONSULTATIONS WITH DUBLIN CITY COUNCIL SAMRA decided to approach the key stakeholder, Dublin City Council, to gauge their response to the ideas. We believed that there was little point in bringing the ideas to the community if DCC were not willing to even consider them. At the initiative of the then Dublin Lord Mayor, James Geoghegan, SAMRA and Grafton Architects met DCC key executives in November 2024 , including the Chief Executive, Richard Shakespeare, the City Engineer and Assistant Chief Executive, John Flanagan and other senior Planning officials. They responded extremely positively to the proposals, the level of professionalism of the approach from a voluntary organisation, the involvement of Grafton Architects and indeed the Village Ideas Project as a whole. They were very complimentary of the work carried out and presented to them, and acknowledged that Sandymount is in need of public realm enhancements . It was agreed that as a next step, DCC’s senior executives would review the priority projects at a high level internally across their Architects, Engineers and Planning Departments. They called a meeting with SAMRA in April 2025 , where they repeated their enthusiasm for the project ideas as a whole, and undertook to develope a scheme for the public improvement of the north east side of the Green, which would include traffic calming, ahead of a future project to traffic calm the central area of the village where five roads meet. Further projects will be considered by DCC over the next number of years based on the Grafton Architect's integrated ideas, as funding becomes available. SAMRA met with Richard Shakespeare and his project team last September , where they presented their initial proposals, which were designed to accommodate both uses of the area, as a one-way road with parking on the Green side, and as a pedestrianised area in summer weekends. They informed us that they would be developing them for a Non Statutory Public Consultation in the coming months. That Consultation has since taken place across Dec 25 and early this January. We have since met DCC in early March to review progress. Their plan is to further develop their scheme and lodge a Part 8 Planning application in April. All going well, they will tender the project late this year and start construction in Q1 2027. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PROGRAMME Over the course of the last three SAMRA AGMs and through our various newsletters, we have described many of the Grafton Architects ideas and our progress with DCC on their plans for delivery of the first project. In parallel with our discussions with DCC, in April 2025 SAMRA planned the next stage of the Ideas project which is a comprehensive Community Engagement Programme. We again applied for funding from the Community Gain Liaison Committee covering a public Presentation by Grafton Architects and the design of a dedicated website providing full details on their creation of their ideas. We were successful in obtaining the grant and work to prepare this Engagement Programme commenced in January 2026. The website will be a live site where updates are provided as projects proceed, and feedback is provided by residents, businesses and other stakeholders.

BACKGROUND Flood defences are the No 1 priority for SAMRA on behalf of the community. We have been lobbying consistently for the 6 years for the construction of such defences. In December 2024, Jacobs Engineering was appointed to design the Alleviation Scheme. The project is being led by Dublin City Council on behalf of the Office of Public Works, who are the National Competent Authority for the provision of flood defences. Funding is part of the Government's €1.3bn National Development Plan for flood relief measures. SCOPE OF SCHEME The scheme will consider potential flooding from coastal, drainage and river/streams sources, to alleviate the risk of flooding to the community. It will be developed to provide a determined Standard of Protection (0.5% Annual Exceedance Probability (AEP, 1 in 200 year). CURRENT PROGRESS Public Open Day held in April 2025. Various engineering and environmental tasks are in progress (and will be ongoing throughout the design stage), including surveys, asset condition reporting, and sea level and wave action modelling to inform the design of the coastal protection scheme. Engagement with property owners, the National Parks and Wildlife Service, An Taisce. Design development to second stage of Non-Statutory Public Consultation. NEXT STEPS 2nd Public Consultation - Emerging Coastal Options for defences along Strand Rd. - Q2 2026. 3rd Public Consultation - Preferred Option - Q4 2026. Planning Application to An Coimisuin Pleanala - Q3/Q4 2027. GOVERNMENT ACCELERATING INFRASTRUCTURE POLICY This policy adopted in late 2025 is designed to accelerate the provision of infrastructure which SAMRA assumes will apply to this Flood Alleviation Scheme. The 4 key pillars of the Policy include 1) legal reforms to mitigate delays in statutory approvals for critical infrastructure, 2) statutory approvals reforms to accelerate approvals by the various agencies , 3) obligations on state agencies to coordinate various projects in a particular location and 4) concerted efforts to encourage public buy in to infrastructure projects. SAMRA believes that all these pillars could provide very significant benefits to this project, particularly in terms of timeliness. Legal and approvals reforms are designed to reduce the timeline of the overall Planning processes that will apply to this project. This should hasten the projected construction of the coastal works. The obligations on state agencies to coordinate various projects in a particular location should, in SAMRA's opinion, significantly support the call to include off road cycling infrastructure in this Alleviation Scheme, as SAMRA and others have campaigned for. A solution for the repeated foul sewer discharges to Sandymount Strand, such as an interceptor drain, should also be considered in the scope. This would require various state agencies such as the NTA and Uisce Eireann to engage with DCC and the OPW to deliver these co-location projects. SAMRA believes that public buy in to the project will be significantly enhanced by the provision of such additional projects, which will provide very significant community gains. 

Parking has been very constrained in Sandymount over many years for residents, businesses and visitors. In the Village Ideas project, SAMRA examined various proposals to increase parking opportunities around the village, including consideration of various means to encourage a relatively short turnover of shoppers' etc parking on the business streets to discourage day long parking for anyone except residents. In November last, SAMRA met Dublin City Council parking officials to discuss these proposals, and for various reasons including Bye Law regulations, they saw no prospects in these opportunities to improve the situation. In January, SAMRA examined further opportunities, primarily considering various locations where road markings could be adjusted to provide more parking spaces. We have requested DCC to consider such changes through their Traffic Services Request process. We identified possible locations on and just off the Green on Newgrove Avenue that would be particularly helpful in meeting people's concerns. The one on the Green is to do with what appears to be confusion concerning disabled parking. Two new disabled bays were installed some time ago in a new location adjacent to the junction, and it appears that the two existing disabled bays immediately 'downstream' have been removed. However this is not very clear as the old road markings are not fully removed and thus cause confusion. We have requested clearer road markings for these spaces to general parking. On Newgrove Avenue, there is a considerable length of double yellow lines to the right of the entrance to Mount Tabor. In addition, there is a gap in these lines at what is a redundant narrow gate on the Mount Tabor wall. There has been a sign on that gate for some time noting that it is not in use, although that is not there now. At a minimum, a space outside that apparently redundant gate would be very welcome. A review of the extent of the double yellows is also requested. There may be a sight lines issue, but even with some reduction of these lines, some parking bays should not inhibit sight lines in either direction. SAMRA has had a response from DCC about the suggested parking on the gable of Tesco, where DCC have said that the suggested location is on private land. Tesco have since informed us that their land is limited to the line of their building wall, so we are re-visiting this with DCC. Our suggestions for limiting double yellows along Sandymount Rd seem very clear cut as they are outside the walls of houses, away from driveway entrances. Lastly, we have suggested some changes to road markings on Strand Rd adjacent to the junction with Marine Drive. In all, our Requests to DCC could deliver up to 13 spaces. It remains to be seen what their responses will be.

Over many years SAMRA have reviewed Planning Applications in the Sandymount area to decide if we should intervene and lodge submissions to Dublin City Council or the Planning Board (formerly ABP now ACP). We review the Applications made, generally on a monthly basis, and the SAMRA Committee decides whether to intervene in any particular Application, against various criteria including Heritage - respect of Sandymount's Heritage. Strategic Interest - wide Impact; affecting many people; scale. Environmental Impact - NATURAL: flora and fauna; URBAN: streetscape, traffic volume, scale, number of people, drainage. Architecture - not in keeping. Community Value - eg school, playing fields, public transport services. Precedent - where there is clear evidence that a trend is likely to be initiated which clearly violates one or more of the above. In some cases, we employ professional Planning Consultants to make our submissions, otherwise we make them ourselves. This last year we made a submission on the proposed demolition of Wilton House on Claremont Rd, a home within the Sandymount Architectural Conservation Area, and which is, in particular, noted in the ACA designation documentation as an example of the varied mix of historical housing styles in Sandymount. We have also recently made two further submissions to An Coimisiun Pleanala (ACP) regarding the Dublin Port Company's (DPC) 3fm development of the South Port, in response to additional information that DPC sent to ACP. The timing of ACP's Decision on the overall Application is still to be advised.

BACKGROUND The Forum was set up by Dublin City Council in December 2024. It is a forum for the mutual exchange of information between stakeholders associated with the Irish Glass Bottle site. (City Council, Area Committee, Area Office, Local Community, Local Residents, Developer, etc.) It provides a platform for local and stakeholder concerns to be discussed and resolved throughout all stages of the development. The Forum is chaired by Cllr Danny Byrne and attendees include representatives from Sean Moore Rd RA, the IGB Housing Action Group, SAMRA, the Developer, local Councillors and DCC Executives. 5 meetings have been held to date. TOPICS INCLUDE Compliance with the SDZ Planning Approval. Updates on Housing from DCC including Social and Affordable allocations. Updates from the Developer including progress to date and next stages. Community issues and concerns. The provision of Public Transport to the site including the Luas. The re-design of Sean Moore Rd. SOME SAMRA COMMENTS SAMRA has raised the issue of the integration of the development into the surrounding area. The Glass Bottle development will house ca 9,500 residents, on the doorstep of Irishtown, Ringsend and Sandymount, which combined have a population of ca 17,000. The commercial component of the development could employ somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000 people although it may be at the lower end of that range. The Developer is obliged to build the scheme in accordance with the Poolbeg SDZ Masterplan which was granted Planning Permission in 2019. As such, the extent of housing, commercial and associated services and facilities buildings, carparking and outdoor spaces has been pre-determined. As examples, there is provision for a site for a primary school, a health facility, and a pub. At this time, the Dept of Education have provided no indication as to when they will develop the school. SAMRA, supported by others, has requested that some form of study be carried out to establish if there are shortfalls in the development across social, economic, health, hospitality and other provisions, that might create both demand and opportunities in the surrounding areas. The study would also cover the community gains for the area from facilities to be provided within the development, such as the planned artist studio spaces. Dublin City Council are currently reviewing this request. SAMRA also requested clarity regarding the timeline for the provision of the Luas services to the development. The reply to the Chair of the Forum from the Minister for Transport on 1st Sept 2025 stated that the "development of a Luas red line extension to serve Poolbeg is currently one of the longer-term proposals in the National Transport Authority’s (NTA) Transport Strategy for the Greater Dublin Area, for delivery from 2037-2042. Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) is the Sponsoring Agency for the proposed Luas to Poolbeg project and the NTA is the day-to-day Approving Authority". The Forum is currently challenging this timeline which is seen to be far too long. 

Dublin Port Company are planning a €1.1 bn development of their South Port, as the last stage of their overall masterplan for the Port. The project originally included New Lo-Lo and Ro-Ro Terminals. A large new ship turning area. A 3,500 Container Storage area, with containers stacked 3 high and associated craneage, on the inner Sandymount Strand side of the Port. A new South Port Access Route, ( SPAR ), linking the North and South Ports including a new bridge across the Liffey, east of the East Link Bridge. A Maritime Village. Some playing fields and a small park. PRE-PLANNING CONSULTATIONS WITH SAMRA In mid 2023, DPC CEO and his senior officials invited SAMRA to a consultation on their proposals , including, in particular, their proposed Container Storage area. We raised a serious concern about this area, pointing out that it would be clearly visible from the Strand, whereas DPC argued that it would not be seen. SAMRA commissioned a survey of the area, and a computer generated image of the storage. This clearly demonstrated that the containers would be visible. We then organised a very well supported petition calling on DPC to remove this element of their proposal. At a further consultation with DPC, they informed SAMRA that they would relocate the storage area to the northside of the development, and would instead use the area as a trailer park. We argued that the area should be used for amenity space including an extension of the Nature Reserve. PLANNING APPLICATION DPC lodged their Application to An Bord Pleanala in mid 2024, which showed the relocation of the Container Storage area, and the trailer park as they had advised to us. SAMRA appointed a Planning Consultant, BPS Planning, to prepare a Submission on our behalf. The 87 page Submission, lodged in September 2024, argued strongly against the trailer park on various grounds, calling instead for the Nature Reserve to be extended and the provision of additional amenity facilities. Our Submission also addressed concerns on various other proposals, including the SPAR with a lack of joined up thinking about the cross river Luas, traffic considerations, construction planning, and community gain provisions including poor cycling infrastructure. We have since made two further Submissions in 2025 in response to further information lodged by DPC with An Bord Pleanala, ( now An Coimisiun Pleanala ). ACP's Decision on the Planning Application is awaited, with no timeframe yet given.

EAST COAST RAILWAY INFRASTRUCTURE PROTECTION PROJECTS – MERRION TO DUN LAOUGHAIRE SECTION A project is in progress by Irish Rail to provide improved coastal protection against predicted climate change effects of sea level rises and coastal erosion on the east coast railway corridor between Merrion Gates and Wicklow Harbour. SAMRA attended an initial Public Consultation on this project at the Royal Marine Hotel, Dun Laoghaire on 12 th November 2024, with a particular interest in the section of the route from Merrion Gates to Dun Laoghaire. Along this route there are various design proposals to protect the rail line from flooding. One such proposal is the extension of the existing rock embankment, a so called rock armour outside the rail line. Following review of these proposals, including a discussion with the Design Consultants, Jacob Engineering, SAMRA made a Submission to the Consultation suggesting that a walk and cycle way be incorporated into the scheme. THE SUTTON TO SANDYCOVE CYCLE AND WALK WAY PROMENADE -S2S Michael Collins, retired Architect from his own well known firm, instigated the S2S concept for a cycle lane along the Bay from Sutton to Sandycove back in the 1990s, and it then became Government policy. The arc on the northside from Clontarf to Sutton is in place and Dublin Port are in the process of extending it through the Port to the Liffey. Their 3fm project to develop the south side of the Port is currently at Planning stage and allows for a cycle lane across the river as part of a new bridge that is proposed as part of the project. They then plan to extend it to the Sandymount seafront along the east side of the Glass Bottle site. SAMRA and the bulk of the Sandymount Community are advocating for the proposed cycle way along Strand Rd to be incorporated into the Sandymount enhanced flood defences project currently also being designed by Jacobs Engineering. As such, the addition of a cycle and walk way along the rail line as part of the Irish Rail flood defences project would then extend the S2S promenade to Dun Laoghaire, which along with the existing cycle and walk way to Sandycove, would complete the full S2S. In parallel with SAMRA's Submission to the initial Public Consultation on the rail line project, Michael Collins provided a well developed scheme for such a promenade, and made a Submission accordingly. Such a promenade could also accommodate Eirgrid's proposed installation of 225 KVa cable from Carrickmines to Poolbeg. An S2S Group is now lobbying for his scheme making a strong case including that a three agency combined project not only makes huge sense, but is entirely in line with the recently published Accelerating Infrastructure Policy which calls for various State agencies to work with each other on local projects and seeks to encourage public buy in. Such buy in would be significantly supported by the community gain that the rail line project would provide by including a coastline promenade in its scope. DUBLIN BAY, A DESIGNATED UNESCO BIOSPHERE Dublin Bay is an ecosystem that is home to many rare and important species of wildlife. In 2015 the Bay as a whole was designated a UNESCO Biosphere, and is the only capital city in the world with such a Biosphere on its doorstep. The designation reflects its significant environmental, economic, cultural and tourism importance, and is recognised as such by Dublin City Council. Bird wildlife includes Brent Geese, who winter there, and the Oystercatcher. Fish life includes the Harbour Seal and the Grey Seal. Empty Cockle shells are a very common feature in the beaches, and a pioneer plant is the Common Cordgrass. 32 species of green seaweeds have been recorded on the Bay mudflats. The rocky shorelines provide habitats for plants and animal communities. As described by the Irish Conservation a Wild Birds Regulations, the inter-tidal land portion of the South Bay is an area of 7.25 square kilometres. As such, it is larger than the Phoenix Park, the biggest enclosed park in Europe. This inter-tidal walkable portion of the Bay provides an incredible sand landscape with a vast horizon, a destination, a waterpark, an environmental sanctuary. As such Dublin Bay is a free gift of Nature and a wonderful amenity for its citizens and visiting tourists. SAMRA'S SUPPORT FOR PROMENADE PROPOSAL SAMRA fully and enthusiastically supports the S2S Group's call for a promenade with a cycle way extending our promenade from Merrion Gates all the way along the shoreline to Dun Laoghaire. We are joined in that support by the community groups of Booterstown and Trimleston, and are united with the communities of Blackrock, Monkstown and Dun Laoghaire in calling for such a promenade to be incorporated into the proposed Merrion Gates to Dun Laoghaire rail line enhanced flood defences project. We believe that the proposal presents a once in the lifetime opportunity to provide such a facility. What a fantastic amenity it would provide for Dublin and its tourist industry. It would hugely enhance the vistas and experience of Dublin Bay from the south side, which are currently relatively restricted to Sandymount and the Dun Laoghaire to Sandycove area. The gift of Nature that is the UNESCO Biosphere, as described above, would be dramatically displayed to citizens and tourists alike. The shoreline links to the villages of Blackrock and Monkstown, with their many attractions, would be opened up, access would be provided to many historic features along the coast, and it would provide a wonderful panoramic route for active travel for visitors all the way from Dun Laoghaire to Dublin City.