Talk on heritage and habitats of Navan describes the Boyne as 'the lungs of the town'

A group campaigning to protect and restore natural heritage and habitats around Navan see the river Boyne as “the lungs of the town” and well worth looking after so that future generations can enjoy its beauty, a lecture in the Solstice Arts Centre has been told.

The lecture, part of Heritage Week, was organised by the Navan and District Historical Society.

Introduced by the historical society chairman Pascal Marry, Eimear Clowry Delaney of the Wild About Navan environmental conservation organisation with the aim of protecting and restoring natural heritage and habitats in the town, said their aim was to work together with the community in making the town a more sustainable and liveable home.

The river itself had played a pivotal role in the story of Navan through myths and legends, and Boann the mythical goddess of the Boyne. It featured in so many ancient stories. A lot of its history lay in transport and the Boyne Currach had featured heavily.

People had gained sustenance from it through fishing and of course water played an important part in the mills on its banks. Its stories ran through the Irish language and folklore and through commerce.

Obviously, the river had become less important in people’s lives as transport developed through our roads as people sought more urgent or quicker solutions in the faster-paced lives that people lived, she said.

Researchers were busy trying to work out how damage can be done to our environment and about the more positive opportunities that we have.

“What we have learned through our project is that it is through reconnecting with our past that we can find a clear road map for our future. So we have loved exploring our history and learning from our past and from our ancestors.

"It has been really joyful to look at our monuments and the arts and the sacredness of our rivers, nature and our environment. We realise that people are reconnecting with nature for their wellbeing. The Covid crisis had helped people become attached to the areas in which they lived."

In the background was the climate crisis and the biodiversity crisis. The organisation had been working with the Boyne River Trust and they had founded a new Boyne river action group for the Boyne Valley and the idea was to get people interested in protecting this precious natural resource.

People were desperate to repair any damage that had been done and to restore nature.