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A
resolution of the mayor and the city council of Chicago, Illinois, USA, both
condemning the destruction of Ireland’s most sacred and ancient monuments and
also urging the Government of Ireland, and Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, to reverse
past decisions and halt the M3 motorway in favor of upgrading (existing) N3 into
a reverse peak traffic flow, upgrading the existing rail line for expanded mass
transit. This will result in a socially responsible development, with a shorter
route, environmentally friendly, and less expensive alternative which will
preserve for posterity the Tara Valley and the monuments of Ireland's oldest
civilization and some of the oldest buildings on earth. We urge you to halt the
building of the M3 motorway through the Tara Valley, Tara being the seat of the
High Kings of Ireland, and the most ancient settlement of Irish
civilization.
Whereas, in addition to Tara Valley being the heart of
Ireland's ancient civilization encompassing the entire Boyne Valley, and being
the seat of the high kings where 142 kings once reigned, in 2007, Tara was named
one of the world's 100 most endangered heritage sites, by the New York-based
World Monument Fund. Furthermore, the area has been submitted to be named a
UNESCO World Heritage site, in conjunction with the UNESCO World Heritage site
of Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth tumuli (passage mounds), a short distance away.
To compound the crisis, Tara Valley is over 7000 years old; older than
Newgrange; older than Stonehenge; and older than Egypt’s Pyramids; and contains
the oldest surviving buildings on earth. Tara was the seat of the High Kings,
while Newgrange was their astronomical observatory, this cause now before the
European Union Commission,
Whereas, 'Archaeology Magazine', the
Archaeological Institute of America's highly regarded publication, listed the
Lismullen National Monument, a 7,000 year-old Henge, discovered in March, in the
path of the M3 motorway, in the Tara Valley, as one of the 10 most important
archaeological discoveries of 2007,
Whereas, 350 archaeologists,
professors and academics world wide, signed and submitted a letter of petition
to the EU, voicing their concerns about the historical significance of Tara,
with a plea to halt the M3 and instead upgrade the N3 and rebuild the existing
rail line. Distinguished National and International archaeologist have
continually attacked the methodology of the Roads Authority in their surveys of
the archaeological sites, and these professional opinions are part of the case
before the EU Commission for breach of EU Environmental law.
Whereas,
in response to large-scale developments, the EU introduced new Heritage
Legislation on the Protection of the Archaeological record (The Valletta
Convention), which the Government of Ireland ratified in 1997. The most
fundamental aspect of the convention is the formal acknowledgement of
archaeological heritage as a non-renewable resource that must be conserved for
future generations. The current administration has been repeatedly called before
the EU Commission for breaches of these laws.
Whereas, the EU (the EU
Commission is the most powerful body in the 27 nation European Union of States)
have called on the Irish Government to halt work on part of the contentious M3
motorway after concern was expressed about the impact on newly discovered
ancient archaeological sites directly on the route of the M3, less than a mile
from the center of the Hill of Tara. It was urged that in light of the 7000
year-old ruins found at Lismullin, work on the M3 motorway project should be
halted and an urgent and immediate full route review carried out. The EU
Commission has warned the Government that Ireland is in serious breach of EU law
by not carrying out a second investigation after these discoveries (which have
already been destroyed) along the route of the M3,
Whereas, the irreversible
destruction of 38 National Monuments along the proposed M3 motorway has been
compared to the destruction of the 1000 year old giant Buddha’s in Afghanistan
in the hands of the Taliban, while the collateral damage to another 100 sites
has no precedence,
Whereas, historically, National Monuments and
archaeological sites in Ireland were legally protected under the National
Monuments Acts (1930-1994). In 2004, in an act of retribution against public
opposition to a major planning scheme that was defeated in the highest court in
the land, the politicians passed a new National Monuments which was designed to
permit the photographing, measuring and destruction of any monument the Minister
of Environment deemed expedient. The rewriting of the National Monuments Act in
2004, turned historical legal protection on its head, putting the fate of
Ireland’s Heritage into the hands of a few political Ministers,
Whereas, the
Irish Times POLL on Tara resulted in 82% voted YES to the question: “Do you
think the Hill of Tara should be added to UNESCO's list of World Heritage
Sites?” Application to UNESCO to make Tara the center of a World Heritage Site
is pending in conjunction with the UNESCO World Heritage site at Newgrange, a
mere 10 miles along a line of sight, clear evidence of a connection to the
ancient settlement along the Boyne Valley. According to a recent Red C Survey,
conducted by Sacred Ireland, 62% of the adult population think the road in its
current format is wrong, 58% want an alternative instead of the M3 and a bare
30% actually want the M3.
Whereas, the alternative mass transit scheme,
the widening of the existing N3 combined with the refurbishing of the existing
rail line for commuter transportation, would solve the commuter transit issue,
and the M3 motorway could be canceled,
Whereas, The M3 route through the
Tara Valley has been proven to be the most destructive, environmentally
unfriendly, the costliest, and the single option that destroys over 38 National
Monuments, with collateral damage to over 100 other monuments, which lay in
close proximity to the destructive side effects of heavy construction machinery
along the M3,
Whereas, MINISTER for Transport Noel Dempsey declared that
he was "100 per cent" behind reopening the Navan-Dublin rail line, thereby
negating the need for the Northern section of the M3, which is the contentious
section through the Tara valley,
Whereas, IRELAND must, by order of the
EU, reduce its CO2 emissions by a fifth by 2020 the biggest cut demanded of any
country in the European Union under wide-ranging plans to tackle climate change.
Hardest hit in Ireland will be transport, services and agriculture. The package
of measures designed to tackle climate change also sets targets for moving from
fossil fuels to environmentally friendly energy sources. Under this plan,
Ireland will have to change its almost total dependency on imported oil and
ensure that 16% of all energy comes from renewable resources by 2020,
Whereas, the heritage of Ireland belongs not only to Ireland, and the
world in general, but to the Irish Diaspora all over the world, who outnumber
the population of Ireland by a factor of 20,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT
RESOLVED by the Mayor and the City council of City of Chicago as
follows:
Resolved,
Resolved, that the Mayor and the City Council
of the City of Chicago recognize the irreversible destruction of such an ancient
civilization, that is taking place and,
Further Resolved, that it is
recognized and acknowledges that the M3 section through the Tara Valley is not
necessary given that there are better options for less cost, at a far smaller
environmental damage,
Further Resolved, the effects of global warming and
the need to plan for a future with less use of oil products for transportation
needs, and ,
Further Resolved, that the City of Chicago is living proof
of the viability of rail and bus lines for mass transportation, and,
Further Resolved, the necessity to preserve and protect the natural and
man made treasures of ancient civilizations is for the benefit of all of
mankind,
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