The National Parks and Wildlife Service is also responsible for the development and management of national parks and nature reserves. To date, five national parks have been established. All five meet international standards for national parks, conserving as they do outstanding parts of the natural heritage. In recent years State forests have been opened to the public. There are 11 large forest parks and over 400 smaller amenities.
Public access is generally limited to pedestrians.
The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture and up to the 1960's the population lived largely in rural areas. Since then, the natural environment has been affected by policies to promote the establishment and expansion of modern industry, by a major enlargement of urban development, and by changed patterns of agriculture, including more intensive production. Despite increased pressures on the environment, late industrialisation and the predominance of clean modern industry have had the advantage of enabling major damage to be prevented. Ireland's location off the west coast of Europe, with high annual rainfall and prevailing south-west winds from the Atlantic, contributes to the quality of the environment. The country is largely free from air pollution and its watercourses are of a very high standard.