Mulranny and Bertra regain Blue Flag status

BACK IN BLUE The iconic Bertra beach near Murrisk has regained its Blue Flag status. Pic: Linda McNulty

Mulranny and Bertra regain Blue Flag status

12 beaches across the county awarded the prestigious status at awards ceremony in Kerry

Anton McNulty

TWO of Mayo’s most iconic beaches - Mulranny and Bertra - have regained their Blue Flag status after they previously lost out on the prestigious honour due to storm damage.
The announcement was made this afternoon (Thursday) by the Minister for the Environment, Alan Kelly at the annual International Blue Flag Award ceremony held on the Ballinskelligs beach in Co Kerry.
Minister Kelly revealed further good news by announcing that the existing ten Blue Flag beaches in Mayo had all retained their status, bringing the number of Blue Flag beaches in the county to 12.
Last year, the number of Blue Flag beaches in Mayo were reduced to ten due to the coastal devastation caused to both Mulranny and Bertra by the previous winter’s storms. While they both met the strict bathing quality standards, they were unable to meet all the criteria required for Blue Flag status due to the repair work which was not completed before the start of the bathing season.
The good news for Mulranny and Bertra was not shared by Old Head beach in Louisburgh, who again failed to regain its Blue Flag status it lost in 2013.
Nationally, Donegal and Kerry have the most Blue Flag beaches with 13 each. Donegal retained all its Blue Flags from 2014 and in Kerry, Rossbeigh beach regained its Blue Flag to move the county back onto 13 flags.

Disappointment
There will be disappointment in Enniscrone where the town’s well known beach which lost its Blue Flag due to failure to comply with water quality requirements.
There will also be disappointment in Ballycastle, where the beach lost their Green Coast Award by not complying to water quality standards. In total eight beaches in Mayo were awarded with Green Coast Awards, which are awarded to beaches with excellent water quality but who may not have the suite of facilities required for Blue Flag status.
The 12 Blue Flag beaches in Mayo are: Dooega, Keel, Keem, Golden Strand and Silver Strand, all in Achill; Carrowmore; Clare Island; Ross, Killala; Mullaghroe; Elly Bay, Bertra and Mulranny.
The eight Green Coast Awards went to Carrowniskey, Cross, Belmullet; Cross, Louisburgh; Portacloy, Silver Strand, Srah, Termon and Whitestrand.
The Blue Flag is administered in Ireland by An Taisce on behalf of the Foundation for Environmental Education and a total of 81 beaches and five marinas were awarded the prestigious Blue Flag award representing an increase in six Blue Flag awards since 2014.