Minister O’Brien congratulates winners of Blue Flag & Green Coast Awards

-Rush South Beach awarded Green Coast Award for the first time-
-Portmarnock’s Velvet Strand retains Blue Flag status-
 
The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage and Dublin Fingal TD, Darragh O’Brien has congratulated the winners of the Blue Flag and Green Coast Awards.
Rush South Beach, has been awarded a Green Coast Award for the first time ever and Portmarnock’s Velvet Strand is retaining its Blue Flag status for the 2021 season.
The Blue Flag is an international award for beach excellence and is operated in Ireland by An Taisce with support from the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government. The Green Coast Award is given to sites which have excellent water quality but which may be less developed and less populated than Blue Flag beaches.
Commenting Minister O’Brien said, “I’d like to extend my sincere congratulations to the winners of this year’s Blue Flag and Green Coast Awards. This year a record setting 93 Blue Flags and 63 Green Coast Awards have been announced for 2021.
“Winning a Blue Flag or a Green Coast award is a collective effort with local authorities, An Taisce, local coastal communities and other volunteers on the ground all playing their part. My colleagues Councillor Brian Dennehy and Councillor Eoghan O’Brien have both been advocates for these beaches over the past number of years and we know that these awards are a fantastic vote of confidence for both the residents and visitors who enjoy these beaches.
“My Department and indeed the wider Government is committed to supporting programmes such as the Blue Flag and Green Coast Award and to building on them to achieve positive changes in environmental behaviour countrywide,” he concluded.