Transformation of Haulbowline Island, Cork Harbour Voted Best National Engineering Project

18th November 2019

The East Tip of Haulbowline Island in Cork Harbour won the Engineers Ireland National Engineering Project of the Year 2019. The Mayor of Cork thanked all involved in the remarkable transformation of the former industrial site and all who voted. Adjacent to the project site is the Irish Naval Service (headquarters) and basin where several patrol vessels are berthed. Credit: Cork County Council / Engineers Ireland retweeted

The East Tip Haulbowline Island Remediation Project in Cork Harbour, was voted the National Engineering Project of the Year for 2019 at a ceremony held in Dublin.

As Afloat previously reported, Engineers Ireland invited members of the public to cast their vote in the shortlist of projects nominated in the awards' flagship category.

According to Engineers Ireland, the project in Cork Harbour was conducted by Cork County Council, RPS, PJ Hegarty & Sons and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

The local authority engineering project that transformed the East Tip on the island (opposite Cobh) took the the lead at the 2019 Engineers Ireland Excellence Awards held in association with the ESB.

The remediation project, delivered on time and under budget, has seen 22 acres of the island’s East Tip transformed from a desolate, toxic, industrial site into a magnificent public recreational facility for local residents, workers and visitors in what has been one of the biggest environmental works in the history of the state.

The site at Haulbowline Island in Co Cork, formerly the home of Irish Steel, has been used for waste disposal for decades, with an estimated 650,000 cubic metres of slag and other waste metal from the steelworks deposited on the site from the 1960s until steel making ended at the plant in 2001.

Adopting the most innovative and customised engineering solutions throughout to overcome many challenges, the East Tip now boasts new playing pitches, walkways, cycleways, seating areas and the planting of hundreds of trees, woodlands and wildflower areas.

The Engineering Project of the Year category is sponsored by Transport Infrastructure Ireland and is voted for by a panel of judges and the public.

To read much more on the project click here (scroll down) to sub-heading: 'Immensely Challenging'

Published in Cork Harbour

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Jehan Ashmore

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Jehan Ashmore is a marine correspondent, researcher and photographer, specialising in Irish ports, shipping and the ferry sector serving the UK and directly to mainland Europe. Jehan also occasionally writes a column, 'Maritime' Dalkey for the (Dalkey Community Council Newsletter) in addition to contributing to UK marine periodicals.

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