Tree Planting at Custom House to mark the OPW's 190th Anniversary

The Office of Public Works (OPW) expands its roots in Irish culture and landscape as it announced it will plant 190 native trees at its many locations across the country. The initiative comes as the OPW celebrates its 190th anniversary this year, having been founded in late 1831. The Minister for the Office of Public Works, Patrick O’Donovan, TD, was joined by senior gardener Karen Fennelly to plant the first tree, a native Sessile oak, at the Custom House, which served as the first office for the OPW 190 years ago.

The OPW is responsible for the implementation of government policy under the three categories of Planning & Estate Management, Heritage, and Flood Risk Management. Over the past 190 years, the OPW has played an essential role in the construction, protection and conservation of Ireland as a country, overseeing important building projects such as Queen’s colleges in Belfast, Cork, and Galway in 1850, the completion of Government Buildings in 1922, the building of Templemore Garda College in 2006, and the completion of the Clonakilty flood relief scheme in 2021.