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Should DCC close Bull Island?

Seth Brundle

As per the article, Bull Island as a wildlife sanctuary is rapidly being destroyed due to dog owners, drivers, bait digging, etc.

I can remember the RTE news showing a hare run across a green (& I think moving a ball) during the Carroll's Irish Open.

My own view is that despite being created as the result of man's actions, it is too important now for wildlife and there isn't really anywhere similar to it. Our short term pleasures should not justify the damaging it is seeing. The article also shows that asking the public to abide by rules doesnt work.

So, should we close general access to Bull Island from the public and if not, why not?

https://www.irishtimes.com/environment/2026/03/12/bull-island-is-natures-gift-to-dubliners-they-havent-been-grateful/

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Cyclingtourist

Well the Brent geese will leave the 'sanctuary' at high tide and fly off to playing pitches and parks where they're much more prone to be disturbed by dog walkers.

Sure there should be a bit more enforcement or at least hi-visibility monitoring but it's an amenity as well as a wildlife sanctuary.

No it shouldn't be closed.

Cookie_Monster

Like every other problem in Ireland some actual enforcement of existing laws/ rules would probably solve the majority of the issues

Gloomtastic!

Was there at the weekend and saw so many dogs off lead in the no go zone.

Just shoot one, the outrage will be massive but people will learn instantly.

L1011

Golf courses can go first; then off leash dogs. See what it's like without the pesticides and uncontrolled dogs.

The Airport can supply them with mating pairs of hares; it has the largest amount of them in the entire country I think. The lawns outside the office blocks on quiet Summer days (e.g. Friday when everyones WFH) are like hare picnics.

elperello

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124308262#Comment_124308262

Not a good idea.

The shooter would end up in court.

Gloomtastic!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124308323#Comment_124308323

Park ranger might get away with it.

John_Rambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058435862/should-dcc-close-bull-island

The Bull Island is a biosphere, a UNESCO designated coastal ecosystem designed to balance high value nature conservation with human presence. So banning people entirely would defeat the point. It has been a lung for city dwellers for generations and the vast majority of human activity there is harmless. That said, you make a fair point. Bad behaviour needs to be stamped out quickly.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124308267#Comment_124308267

I completely agree on the golf course point. Golf courses can be a monoculture disaster for ecosystems like Bull Island. They replace diverse natural habitats with tightly managed grass, removing native plants and reducing biodiversity.

The dog situation is also a mess. Even with the new park rangers there is still dog waste everywhere, and off leash dogs are flushing flocks and gaggles of birds daily. The hare idea is a great one. I’m on the island every week and I’m already seeing plenty of rabbit scat, which suggests they’re making a comeback.

Cyclingtourist

No they shouldn't and it's not going to happen. People will walk their dogs off the leash along the beach and the dog might chase a few seagulls, big deal.

Tenzor07

Bull Island is basically a Golf course, so there's no way it will be closed…

Economics101

The Irish Times piece quoted in post #1 refers to Bull Island as "Nature's gift to Dubliners". No it isn't. It was created by the effects of the Bull Wall on tides and currents. If anything it was Captain Bligh's gift to Dubliners.

John_Rambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124310059#Comment_124310059

Agreed, the island shouldn't be shut off but dogs should not be near the salt marshes even on lead, in the dune systems off lead, or past the causeway on the beach at all. The seal colony is regularly chased to water by dogs, even when they are in pup. Large flocks and gaggles are flushed from the marsh when they are trying to feed and bulk up for migration. The two biggest villains on the island are irresponsible dog owners and the golf clubs.

Tombo2001

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124307777#Comment_124307777

No, this is a cop out and excuse for bad behaviour.

You know full well that DCC cant have people out patrolling Bull Island as well as every park in the city, as well as pavements where dogs crap. There would need to be 10000 staff employed to do this.

Its totally unrealistic to expect this to be patrolled.

It reminds me of when people defend littering on the basis that DCC 'doesnt provide enough bins'. Its still your litter, its still your crap.

If people cant behave responsibly and if, as the OP says, it is threatening the viability of the ecosystem (which is a fairly open 'if') - then the only options to address this are to either ban dogs or close it off entirely.

Citizen Six

Shouldn't be that hard to fence off a large part of north east of the island. Don't allow people there at all. The island is big enough.

John_Rambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124316603#Comment_124316603

It's such a sensitive and fragile coastal reserve that even fence laying is controversial! Digging posts, machinery etc… Even though it happens daily on the golf courses.

bikeman1

It is quite clear to me, as L1011 has said, the golf courses have to go first. Only then and only then, can the conversation move to the next part of conservation.

The golf course are managed to perfection, and are not natural. They should be given up to the island first. That will never ever happen, and we know why (people who think they are VIP).

I grew up as a kid, driving on to the beach. People having bonfires or BBQ's in the Dune system. People trampling all over the place. It is a million times better now.

I'm happy to walk my dog there from time to time, keeping it controlled and picking up after it. We need greater responsibility.

The one thing I did notice in recent years, is that since you can only park on the causeway, there are less people on the North end of the island, because they are too lazy to walk.

Strumms

one of the golf courses has been there over 100 years. How do you legally just go to a private golf course and say, actually, you are closed…. You’d have to CPO the thing. Which wouldn’t be achievable. No way the government would throw money at that with all the issues facing this country and citizens, it would be political suicide. They a few months ago turned down an offer of €75 million from a business that wanted to build houses on it.

Also the golf club have apparently a 62 year lease on the land still to run… more here..

https://irishgolfer.ie/latest-golf-news/2025/10/06/e75-million-relocation-offer-rejected-by-clontarf-golf-club/

Seth Brundle

Clontarf Golf Club isn't on Bull Island - it is beside Mount Temple on the Malahide Rd.
The two on the island are the Royal Dublin GC and St. Annes GC

Strumms

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124321887#Comment_124321887

ok, my oversight, point still stands though, how do you ninja both amenities, both clubs from the island ? Wouldn’t be financially feasible and would be a colossal political OG….

Appletart Upsetter

Royal Dublin Golf Club has been on the Island since 1885.

Apparently when it opened first, the first Tee was right beside the beach. Since then the island has continued to expand so the land between the golf club and the beach is "new". I assume the Island will continue to expand over time

L1011

St Annes are tenants of the Council, lease expiring 2070.

Royal Dublin appear to be freehold.

elperello

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124321958#Comment_124321958

Thanks for the info.

It would seem that getting the golf clubs to move is a non runner.

magicbastarder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124310059#Comment_124310059

'the dog might chase a few seagulls, big deal'

yeah, it is. dogs being let off the lead is a major part of why wildlife is suffering on the island. st annes park is nearby, plenty of other places to walk dogs - and i think even let them off the leash at certain times.

it might make sense to ban dogs entirely from bull island, rather than closing the island.

John_Rambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124322119#Comment_124322119

I would have said absolutely correct 20 years ago and probably today. But I'm not so sure in 20 years to come.

Citizen Six

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124322291#Comment_124322291

Where could they move to, that is a similar location by the sea?

As seen with Clontarf Golf Club, unless you throw insane money at them, they just aren't interested.

John_Rambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124322636#Comment_124322636

I don't care where they go to be honest with you!

But you're right, they're old school with a lot of (somewhat diminished) power and money.

Macy0161

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124322133#Comment_124322133

A very significant number of dog owners seem incapable of obeying control of dog bye-laws, anywhere in the State. Never mind being under effective control even where those bye-laws don't exist.

Gloomtastic!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124327206#Comment_124327206

Too many grey areas with regards dog control.
All dogs on lead, all the time. No more poo on the pavement, no more wildlife disturbance, no more dog attacks. It’s really that simple.

If anyone thinks a dog has to be off lead to be exercised properly, I will prove to them they are wrong. A dog just wants to be walked.

If you can’t do it on a lead then you either shouldn’t have a dog, need to change the type of dog you have or get yourself a professional dog walker.

John_Rambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124327634#Comment_124327634

I presume you're American. We have a different approach in Europe, blanket all dogs on leads at all times everywhere doesn't work, it ignores how dogs actually behave and develop. Proper off lead exercise and socialisation are hugely important. Dogs that are constantly restrained often don’t learn how to read other dogs or situations properly, and that’s where you can end up with problems when they do get loose. A well socialised, well exercised dog is generally far more predictable than one that’s never allowed off lead.

That said, when it comes to the Bull Island there are clearly places where dogs shouldn’t be off lead, on the salt marshes, the dune system or within a kilometre of the seal colony. That’s just basic respect and common sense, and you're probably right about all dogs on leads on the island in the future if people can't behave themselves.

St Anne’s Park have large designated areas for off-lead exercise, and the park itself allows it at certain times for non restricted breeds. That kind of balanced approach makes far more sense than an outright ban.

Gloomtastic!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124328131#Comment_124328131

Presume all you like but you’d be wrong, I’m Irish. I also used to work with dogs professionally.

Dogs are by nature pack animals with one dog, the alpha, as their leader who keeps everyone in check.

We are now so far removed from what is natural for dogs, they are now the second most fecked up species on the planet, after ourselves.

There are now so many ifs and buts when it comes to dogs and their owners, that the only solution is - all dogs, on leads, all the time.

John_Rambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124329078#Comment_124329078

You’re mixing a few antiquated ideas with modern evidence there, very outdated thinking from someone who obviously worked with dogs a very long time ago.

The whole alpha dog thing has largely been debunked. It came from studies on captive wolves in artificial groups. In real life, wolf packs are family units, parents and offspring, not constant dominance battles. Dogs are even further removed again, they’ve evolved alongside humans for thousands of years and don’t operate on a rigid alpha hierarchy.

Saying all dogs must be on a lead all the time sounds simple, but it ignores how dogs actually learn and behave. A lot of reactivity and aggression comes from frustration and lack of proper socialisation, not from too much freedom. Dogs that never get controlled off lead exercise often don’t learn how to read other dogs or regulate themselves.