2008:935 - Bunboggan/Castletown/Eighty Eight Acres/Fosterfields/Mullaghstones/Townparks, Athboy, Meath

CRDS Ltd have been retained by Meath County Council to act as the archaeological consultants on the bundled wastewater collection system for County Meath, to be carried out in eight towns: Athboy, Donore, Duleek, Kilmainham Wood, Moynalty, Rathcairn, Rathmoylan and Summerhill. This project is expected to continue until 2009. Richard Clutterbuck received a licence to carry out monitoring of the pipe trench excavation in Athboy outside the town’s zone of archaeological potential (‘ZAP’; ME029:023). This licence was transferred to Denis Shine in February 2008. All other works inside the town’s ZAP, which is a national monument, are being carried out by Richard Clutterbuck, under ministerial consent (see No. 937 below, C254; E3687).
Works are nearing completion on the networks pipeworks outside the ZAP and to date no archaeologically significant remains have been encountered.
CRDS Ltd were also subsequently awarded the ‘Design Build and Operate’ or DBO contract for the scheme. This consists of wastewater treatment plants, pump stations and outflow pipes in each of the eight towns. A revised method statement was submitted to the National Monuments Service and the National Museum in February 2008 to cover these works in Athboy. These works were to be completed under the existing licence, which was transferred to Denis Shine. In Athboy the DBO works required the monitoring in advance of a new wastewater treatment plant and associated access road. The plant was located in the townland of Townparks. It had a maximum footprint of 65m by 150m. Monitoring works for the plant were completed in March 2008 and no remains of archaeological significance were noted.
The access road to the plant could not be monitored at the same time owing to an ESB line which needed to be moved. The access road was c. 8m in width and 160m in length with a wayleave of 20m. Monitoring works for this road started on 17 September 2008 and immediately human remains were exposed. An assessment of the site was undertaken and a site discovery report and new licence application were submitted to the National Monuments Service (NMS) and National Museum (NMI). A new licence (08E0865, see No. 938 below) was subsequently granted for the excavation of the site. The excavation was undertaken from 6 October to 19 December 2008. During this time a medieval ditch and quarry pit, nine burials and a range of early modern and modern features were excavated. A preliminary report of this excavation was prepared and submitted to the NMS and NMI in February 2009. Specialist works and post-excavation are ongoing in advance of a final report and publication. The excavation bulletin for the site has been submitted separately for this volume under the reissued excavation number.