I thank the Ceann Comhairle for affording me the opportunity to raise this important matter.
The Department of Defence owns approximately 6,850 acres in the Glen of Imaal, County Wicklow. The land is used as a major training area for tactical training for the Defence Forces. However, it is primarily used as an artillery range and it is the only such range in the State. The range was used by the British army in preparation for the First World War.
The range is located at an area of great natural beauty leading to the slopes of Lugnaquilla. Its environs are heavily used by hill walkers and casual visitors. While much progress has been made in the development of munitions, it is reasonable to assume that many unexploded shells lie in the general range area. These are often buried on impact and over a period of time are brought to the surface.
On 26 April 1978, a youth received superficial injuries when he apparently set fire to a furze bush on land adjacent to the Department of Defence property and a rifle bullet exploded. On 1 September 1978, an accident occurred when four children were injured in an explosion. On 14 April 1979, following the explosion of an unexploded shell, three children were killed and ten others injured. As a result the then Minister for Defence established a committee to examine safety measures at the Glen and to make recommendations as to any further safety precautions which might be deemed necessary to minimise danger to the public arising from the use of Department lands at the Glen as a training ground for the firing of weapons. The committee completed its deliberations in mid-1979.
The main recommendations included the establishment of a range safety unit, the erection of appropriate warning signs and the fencing off of dangerous locations. These recommendations have been implemented. Procedures were introduced to alert the public to the inherent dangers on the firing range and to allow, within certain limits, the continuous use of the Glen by the public for recreational purposes. However, it is still not unusual for hill walkers to stray onto the range area.
In 1982, a special staff of military police personnel was established for the purpose of providing a warden service for the training area in the Glen of Imaal. The numerical establishment approved for the warden service at that time was 17 non-commissioned personnel. Since then no accident has occurred as any non-authorised individuals who stray onto the range area are quickly removed. However, due to the general scaling down of the Defence Forces, the number of military police personnel engaged in the service on 1 November 1998 has dramatically decreased to six non-commissioned personnel.
More hill walkers and visitors than ever now use the area. The Cairns report, commissioned by the then Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht in 1995 to examine the concept of a Wicklow Mountains national park, through error or otherwise, included part of the military lands in the proposed park. On a recent visit to the county, the present Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands, Deputy de Valera, spoke of establishing a council for the Wicklow Mountains national park.
The Minister for Defence may argue that the warden service will be supplemented from other areas. This is not satisfactory. The success of the service has been due to the fact that the personnel have only one role and, as a result, are focused and committed. This cannot be the case if the service is watered down. I urge the Minister to increase the number of personnel in the service from the present number of six to the originally recommended number of 17. I take no satisfaction in reviving unpleasant memories for the many people who suffered as a result of various accidents at the Glen of Imaal, but it is important to highlight that what might be a cutback could cost dearly.
