Work has been completed on The Haulbowline Island Recreational Amenity in the heart of Cork Harbour.

In the largest project of its kind to date in Ireland, the Haulbowline Remediation by Cork County Council has transformed the former East Tip site into a 22-acre People's Park in the middle of Cork Harbour.

Haulbowline, home to the headquarters of the Irish Naval Service, was also formerly the location of Ireland's only steelworks from 1939 until its closure in 2001. 650,000 cubic metres of by-products from the steel production was deposited here over a 40-year period.

The extensive remediation of the site saw the delivery onto the island of over 15,000 HGV loads of material, 47,000 tonnes of rock armour material to protect the shoreline, 180,000 tonnes of subsoil and 37,000 tonnes of topsoil, transforming the site into the scenic landscaped recreational amenity it is today.

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Complete with 4kms of fully accessible pathways, a 1 km jogging circuit, playing pitches and seating areas that lend themselves to remarkable views of the harbour and wildlife observation, the island has hundreds of native tree mixes and plants to promote biodiversity.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin said: "The People's Park Haulbowline is a pearl among a string of initiatives which do justice to the second-largest harbour in the world.

"The development of the harbour as a tourist amenity will provide immense dividends, in terms of employment and leisure, to both the local community and visitors from far and wide."

Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr Gillian Coughlan, congratulated the project team, said: "The remediation of the East Tip was always going to be challenging. Cork County Council, with funding from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and in collaboration with a range of stakeholders, including local residents, have risen to that challenge with phenomenal success. The multi-award-winning project is widely regarded as a model of best practice, and the result today is a great amenity for local communities and a valuable asset for the entire Cork Harbour region."