P r e s s R e l e a s e

Discovering the Wild Boglands

For immediate release 27th August 1998

The IPCC give you the chance to discover the 'Wild Boglands', through a ten week adult education evening course celebrating the rich biodiversity of species and habitats that bogs provide. How bogs were formed, their archaeology, where to find them, what lives in them, how they should be studied, the threats they face, the history of their development and why they need to be conserved are just some of the topics covered on this ten week lecture course.

The course runs for ten consecutive weeks from 7.30-9.30pm. The start date is Thursday 24th September, finishing on Thursday 26th November. The venue is the Botany Department, University College Dublin, Belfield. The course fee is £65.

Details of the lecture programme are as follows:

Week 1. Focus on Bogs - Speaker: Fiona McGowan, Botany Department, UCD

Week 2. Bogs - their Flora and Fauna - Speaker: Dr. Catherine O'Connell, Head of Education, IPCC.

Week 3. Bogs - Our Past Buried Beneath Them - Speaker: Dr. Connor McDermott, Irish Archaeological Wetland Unit, UCD.

Week 4. Bogs - Our Greatest Treasure Trove - Speaker: Dr. Rosaleen Dwyer, Botany Department, Trinity College.

Week 5. Humpty Dumpty - Can You Repair Damaged Bogs? - Speaker: Mr. Jim Ryan, Duchas and Mr. Donal Daly, Geological Survey Ireland.

Week 6. Future Use of Our Bogland Resource - Speaker: Gillian Boyle, Agriculture Faculty, UCD.

Week 7. Guest Lecture - The Wild Beauty of Bogs - Speaker: Mr. Dick Warner, RTE Presenter and Environmental Campaigner.

Week 8. The Growth and Development of the Peat Industry in Ireland - Speaker: Dr. John Feehan, Environmental Institute, UCD.

Week 9. Save the Bogs - Peatland conservation into the Next Millenium - Speaker: Dr. Ruth McGrath, Secretary, IPCC.

Week 10. For Peat Sake - Speaker: Dr. Peter Foss, Chairman, IPCC.

Practical, hands on investigations will be a feature of most sessions. A field trip to the Bog of Allen is planned in week three to seek out Bogland wildlife.

Please contact the Adult Education Office, UCD to book your place . Tel: 01-7061416 quoting course number 006W.

EDITOR'S NOTE 1: The Irish Peatland Conservation Council is a national charity and is entirely supported by voluntary contributions. Conservation projects include: purchasing bogland nature reserves, providing resources and training for teachers and education groups, repairing damaged bogs, fostering a positive attitude towards bogs, and encouraging lifestyles in harmony with the environment. The IPCC can be contacted at: Capel Chambers, 119 Capel Street, Dublin 1. Tel: 01-872 2397. Registered Charity Number: CHY6829

EDITOR'S NOTE 2: The work of the Irish Peatland Conservation Council is supported by the FÁS Community Employment and the European Union.

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