2010:119 - Cork, Cork

Moore Marine Services Ltd was commissioned by Arup Consulting Engineers on behalf of PSE Kinsale Energy Ltd to carry out a programme of archaeological assessment and interpretation of geophysical data acquired from the nearshore and offshore route survey for the proposed Kinsale Gas Storage pipeline and associated umbilical. The Marine Institute was commissioned by Kinsale Energy to carry out a route survey of the offshore section of the proposed Ballycotton storage project pipeline route. Irish Hydrodata was the geophysical contractor assigned to carry out the nearshore survey. The aim of the survey was to identify the optimum route for the proposed pipeline, avoiding all obstacles, natural and man-made.
The survey was carried out from 30 July until 13 August and comprised a side scan sonar survey, a sub-bottom profiler survey, a multi-beam echo sounder survey and a marine magnetometer survey. Moore Marine Services staff were on board the survey vessel RV Celtic Explorer during the survey and they analysed the collected data in real time for possible archaeological signatures.
The aim of the programme of archaeological data review, assessment and interpretation was to analyse the acquired data for the presence of possible archaeological features or anomalies which may be impacted by the development. The first stage of this process involved the completion of a desktop assessment of the route options and their adjacent areas. This concluded that the area surrounding the site was of considerable archaeological significance as its adjacent coastal fringe has been witness to continued human occupation and exploitation since Mesolithic times. It also concluded that conditions on the site were not conducive to the preservation of most archaeological materials with the exception of stone and metal materials which could be discovered at the site.
The programme of real-time review of geophysical data acquisition ensured that a high standard of data acquisition quality was maintained throughout the survey. The two most significant finds of the project were the discovery of the remains of the World War I German U-boat U58 and the UC42.
The report also finds that, although there is material culture preservation potential in the deeper offshore section, deeper water depths tend to reduce damage caused by storm impact and destruction; the high amounts of trawling taking place in the offshore area means that all but the most robust of archaeological material is likely to have been removed. Consequently, it is considered that the potential for the development to impact on additional archaeological remains is low.