Farming Rathcroghan Project- Sustainable Farming in the Rathcroghan Archaeological Landscape

Geographical location	Ireland
Main geographical location (NUTS3)	West
Keywords	Farming practice Farming equipment and machinery Soil management / functionality Water management
Additional keywords	Biodiversity and nature management carbon sequestration sustainability
Main funding source	Rural development 2014-2020 for Operational Groups (in the sense of Art 56 of Reg.1305/2013)
Project type	Operational group
Starting date	2019
End date	2023
Project status	ongoing

Title (in English):

Objective of the project (native language):

The objectives of this project are to:

Manage the landscape in order to sustain a viable and vibrant livelihood for its farming community.
Promote, preserve and conserve the archaeological, cultural and ecological heritage of the area.
Improve water quality and biodiversity.
Promote best practice in relation to carbon sequestration initiatives.
Devise a system of dynamic pedestrian route-ways to provide public access to the landscape.
Increase awareness and recognition amongst the general public of the significance of Rathcroghan as a farmed archaeological landscape and of the central role of its farming community in its care and conservation.

Objective of the project (in English):

The objectives of this project are to:

Description of activities (native language):

The project will actively:

Test and develop a management regime with farmers linked to the National Monument Service, State agencies and other relevant national bodies.
Test and develop innovative management solutions to sustain a viable farming economy in harmony with the cultural and ecological assets of the landscape.
Test, develop and implement best farming and archaeological practice to proactively monitor, manage, and enhance the cultural landscape in an environmentally-friendly way.

Make available, through engagement with key stakeholders, the archaeology expertise to the local farming community necessary to support the care and management of the cultural landscape.

Description of activities (in English):

The project will actively:

Make available, through engagement with key stakeholders, the archaeology expertise to the local farming community necessary to support the care and management of the cultural landscape.

Total budget:

984000

Project coordinator

Contact person:

Daniel Curley

Address:

c/o Rathcroghan Visitor Centre, Tulsk, Castlerea, Co. Roscommon, Ireland.

E-mail:

info@rathcroghan.ie

Phone:

+353 (0)71 9639268

Partner category:

Other

Practice summary

Practice abstract 1

Short summary for practitioners (in English):

Rathcroghan is a particularly well-preserved and internationally significant archaeological landscape, one of a small group of ‘royal’ sites which are included under the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht’s tentative list for UNESCO World Heritage Status (Royal Sites of Ireland). The Farming Rathcroghan Project’s objectives are to manage, care for and conserve this important cultural landscape by implementing a programme of economically sustainable and ecologically sound farming practices, and also facilitating visitor access to the area.

The project will formulate, test and develop a suite of innovative management solutions designed to sustain a viable and vibrant rural farming community in the context of a culturally and ecologically sensitive landscape. In so doing the project aims to raise awareness among the general public of the significance of Rathcroghan as a farmed archaeological landscape and promote the proactive role of farmers and farming in the care and maintenance of the living landscape in harmony with its rich cultural heritage and ecological assets. As part of this programme it will implement a range of best farming and archaeological practice to actively monitor, manage, maintain and present this ancient cultural landscape in an environmentally and ecologically-friendly way. Through engagement with key stakeholders and the National Monuments Service, archaeological expertise will be made available locally through the Farming Rathcroghan Project to facilitate and support the local farming community to protect, manage and conserve the archaeological and cultural landscape of Rathcroghan.

Short summary for practitioners (native language):

Further details

Additional information:

Proactive management measures and the implementation of practical recommendations will be designed to:

Maintain or improve the condition of the archaeological landscape with co-benefits for carbon sequestration, water and soil quality, biodiversity and resilience to climate change.
Improve the viability of a farming livelihood in the Rathcroghan landscape
Enhance the wider social cohesion and benefits to the surrounding local community.
Assist in the formulations of guidelines for assessing, managing and maintaining Rathcroghan’s earthwork archaeological monuments.
Test and develop a Results-based Agri-environmental Payment Schemes (RAPS) which can be applied to other archaeological landscapes throughout Ireland and the EU.
Evolve a workable model for farmer participation and best practice in the management and conservation of archaeological monuments and cultural heritage.
Develop a framework for dynamic access routes to archaeological monuments located in actively farmed land.
Foster an empowered, engaged and innovative farming community at Rathcroghan, which seeks to develop other projects of common interest to sustain the vibrancy of their community and way of life.
Create a greater public awareness of the role of the farming community in the care, protection and conservation of archaeological landscape and the promotion of our shared cultural heritage.

Formulate a range of guidelines based on the experience of the project to providing practical recommendations for other similar projects in the future.