Aughinish, County Limerick
Encyclopedia
Aughinish is an island
in the estuary
of the river Shannon
, located in County Limerick
near Foynes
.
The island is famous as the seat of Rusal Aughinish, the largest refinery to process bauxite into alumina in Europe.
Despite the fact that most of the island is occupied by industry, also the first Irish butterfly sanctuary is housed on Aughinish. The reserve is located in an abandoned quarry.
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
in the estuary
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
of the river Shannon
River Shannon
The River Shannon is the longest river in Ireland at . It divides the west of Ireland from the east and south . County Clare, being west of the Shannon but part of the province of Munster, is the major exception...
, located in County Limerick
County Limerick
It is thought that humans had established themselves in the Lough Gur area of the county as early as 3000 BC, while megalithic remains found at Duntryleague date back further to 3500 BC...
near Foynes
Foynes
Foynes is a village and major port in County Limerick in the midwest of Ireland, located at the edge of hilly land on the southern bank of the Shannon Estuary. The population of the town was 606 as of the 2006 census.-Foynes's role in aviation:...
.
The island is famous as the seat of Rusal Aughinish, the largest refinery to process bauxite into alumina in Europe.
Despite the fact that most of the island is occupied by industry, also the first Irish butterfly sanctuary is housed on Aughinish. The reserve is located in an abandoned quarry.