North Coast Beaches Awarded 7 June 2012
Attwood presents Special Award for Coleraine beaches
Environment Minister
Alex Attwood has presented Coleraine Borough Council with a Special Award for
its Blue Flag Beaches.
This is the 25th
Anniversary of the International Blue Flag programme and Coleraine has the most
Blue Flag beaches of any council area in Northern Ireland.
The Minister said: “Ireland
has a wonderful coastline but the North Coast is probably the jewel in the
crown for seaside visitors. There are so many great beaches in the same area
and all have top class facilities to suit every taste from building sand
castles to surfing. But we need to maximise their potential and that is why I
organised a series of Good Beach Summits last year with that aim in mind.”
The Award was
presented in Portmarnock where Phil Hogan, TD Minister for the Environment, Communities
and Local Government was presenting Blue Flag and Green Coast awards to beaches
in the South.
Minister Attwoods
participation is recognition that tourism and the coastal economy are closely
linked North and South. He added: “I welcome the success of the respective
awards ceremonies for Ireland and Northern Ireland under the Blue Flag and
Green Coast Schemes organised by An Taisce and Tidy Northern Ireland. This is
recognition at the highest level that Ireland’s beaches, North and South, are
among the best in the world both for tourists and day visitors.”
The Award was
received by Deputy Mayor of Coleraine Borough Council, Cllr. William King who
was supported by Mark Strong, Countryside Development Officer and Alex
Carmichael, Leisure Services Officer.
Portrush West was the
first beach in the Borough the win a Blue Flag in 1994. Since then the Council
has worked hard to improve standards to their present exceptional level.
Coleraine Borough
Council manages five major beaches – Downhill, Castlerock, Portrush West
Strand, Portrush East Strand and Whiterocks and all have been recognised this
year for achieving the highest standards of cleanliness, facilities and general
management. In the middle is Portstewart Strand, managed by the National Trust,
which also achieved the International Blue Flag Award.
