The River Jiggy Biodiversity Orchard Project, a Roscommon Tidy Towns project on the Golf Links Road, was unveiled last weekend by Tidy Towns member Christine Walker.
The project was undertaken in order to create awareness about the River Jiggy which flows through Roscommon town. The planting of trees will enhance the local biodiversity and provide a source of nectar for insects and bees which are vital to the ecosystem.
The main group and funding provider was The Local Authority Water Programme (LAWPRO) which consists of a team of 58 people operating from 13 separate Local Authority centres across the country. Funding for the project was granted through the Community Water Development Fund 2019. The group would like to thank Catherine Seale and Mick Keane (Community Water Officers) for their assistance on the project.
Noreen Shryane from the Local Authority Water Programme was present on Saturday and informed the group that she will be working on the River Jiggy in the coming weeks and would welcome those with information about the river to contact her.
There were a number of people who assisted the group with their expertise for the information sign. Ecologist Michael Bell provided information and photos on the flora and fauna and Delcan Skehan provided a photo of an otter. Oisin Naughton from Inland Fisheries also provided information about the River Jiggy.
The information and map for Jiggy was provided by the staff in the Environment Section, Roscommon County Council, Kieran Madden, John O’Gorman, and Gerard Hannon. John Mockler and David Macklin from the area office assisted with the erection of a sign at the bridge.
The planting of the trees and roses was undertaken by the members of Roscommon Tidy Towns under the guidance of Richard Waters. The committee would also like to thank Gerry Browne and Feargal Beattie for supplying materials as well as the Kennedy family for allowing the use of their land.
