Month: April 2008

— was quizmaster for the tense and action-packed two-and-a-half hour final. This was the 17th Credit Unions quiz and Doolin took vic- tory in the Under-13 competition. The team was made up of Keelan McMahon, David Nagle, Orla Burke and David Sims.

After five rounds, they trailed the leaders by three points. At the 10th round, they were one point behind the current leaders (Ennis National

School).

In the 11th round, they got six clear points and were catapulted into the lead. And in the last round, if they scored three points they were tied; but four or more points meant they had won. They scored five points and were the clear and final winners.

Winning team members each re- ceived a Sony PSP and commemo- rative salver, while their school re- ceived €1,270 and the Credit Unions Schools Quiz cup. Every finalist also received a special certificate marking their achievement and a fun gift-bag filled with goodies.

Uel Adair, President of the Irish League of Credit Unions, presented the winning teams with their prizes.

“It’s always exciting for us in the Credit Union movement to see an event like this.

“Here are great teams of young people who have shown that hard work and a great team spirit can tri- umph when it matters,” he said.

Congratulating the winners and all the finalists on their dedication and achievements, Mr Adair added that, ‘For the past 17 years, we have organ- ised and funded our quiz to help stim- ulate children’s curiosity about the world around them, as well as helping them to develop their research, social- ising and teamwork skills.”

AS THE EU treaty referendum draws ever closer, Clare TD, Timmy Dooley (FF) has warned Clare farm- ers that he believes a no vote would seriously harm Clare farming com- munities.

“Treland always has issues to deal with of a national importance in Eu- rope. But we must deal with these is- sues from a position of strength and not from a position of weakness,’ he said.

“A No vote against this treaty would weaken Ireland’s future negotiating capacity at a European level.

For example, the Common Agri- cultural Policy for the period 2009 – 2013 is being reviewed over the

next six to eight months under the forthcoming French Presidency of the European Union.

“From an Irish viewpoint, there are a number of serious issues in the context of this CAP review that we want dealt with during this review OKO en cee

According to Dooley, a no vote against this EU treaty will weaken Ireland’s negotiating hand during this CAP review process.

“I would also like to remind farm- ers that Libertas, which is leading the No campaign with Sinn Fein against this treaty, wants to destroy the Common Agricultural Policy in its entirety,” he continued.

“IT am not satisfied that Peter Man- delson is adequately dealing with

Irish concerns in the context of the Doha round of World Trade Talks. His negotiating approach has been an unbalanced one. The Irish beef industry is the fourth largest beef industry in the world after America, Brazil and Australia.

“We must continue to impress upon Peter Mandelson that his negotiat- ing strategy is simply a wrong one. At the last meeting of EU Agricul- ture Ministers, 20 countries out of 27 spoke out against his negotiating strategy.

“This round of WTO talks has been going on for the past six years in Ge- neva and these talks are not without difficulty.

“No WTO deal can be secured un- less there is an agreement on what 1s

known as non-agricultural market CCAS

“The EU has asked that Brazil, China and India open up their mar- kets to imports of goods and services from the developing world but the ef- forts of the EU have been met with strong opposition from these three countries to date.

“Between the years 2007 and 2013 Irish farmers and rural Irish commu- nities are receiving €12.2 billion in financial support from the European Union for the operation of the annual single farm payment and a variety of other different programmes includ- ing the rural environment protection scheme, on farm investment, re-for- estation initiatives and the disadvan- taged area programme.”

MACRA NA FEIRME has launched a scathing attack on the latest de- velopments coming from the World Trade Organisation talks, saying it would devastate the Irish agriculture industry.

Ms Buckley pointed out that the future of agriculture in this country was very much dependent on the out- come of the forthcoming WTO nego- tiations and warned that freer world trade is likely to lead to international food markets becoming like interna- tional energy markets, where low- cost economies could dominate and control world food markets through OPEC, like cartels.

“On the one hand, Europe under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) wants a European agricultural sec- tor based on a multifunctional model and with a commitment to encourage and make it easier for young people to enter the agri-food sector. Yet on the other hand, EU Trade Commis- sioner Mandelson is determined to dismantle and destroy the agricul- tural industry for young farmers.” she said.

GiecoNehmrecomat Ammo o mee EU farm holdings are run by farm- ers over 55 years of age and this situation will deteriorate further if Commissioner Mandelson is left to demolish the CAP, as young farmers who are responsible for the future of

the European farming sector will not select agriculture as a livelihood.

“Young farmers are just as fo- cussed as any other business people. They weigh up the return for their investment of labour and capital and, if it does not stack up, they won’t stay farming purely for the love of the land,” said Buckley.

“If this deal is to proceed, why would young people select agricul- ture as a career choice?”

Buckley said it was clear that Mr Mandelson has exceeded his mandate from the European Commission and is making disastrous blunders in the ongoing negotiations. The leader of the young farmer organisation, said that Mr Mandelson appeared deter-

mined to pursue a reckless strategy, of maximising market access for European companies involved in industry and services, while simulta- neously selling out on the EU agri- cultural sector.

‘“‘Mandelson’s open door policy will mean a race to the bottom on produc- tion standards, as the market will ul- timately be left to imports.”

“It is absolutely vital that the EU retains its own clean, safe food sup- ply, produced only under conditions acceptable to EU citizens. One only has to look at recent developments such as Foot and Mouth in South America and Bird Flu, to see the importance of being self sufficient when it comes to food.”

A BOOKLET detailing the results of Europe’s foremost large-scale audit of farm machinery will be launched at Clare Museum in Ennis on next Monday, April 14.

Produced by Clare County Coun- cil and east Clare-based consultants Minogue Associates, Antique Farm Machinery of County Clare tells the social story of the county’s farm ma- chinery from the early 1800s to the aL Oks

The Clare Heritage section secured funding from the Heritage Council and Clare County Council to under- take the project last year, as part of the implementation of the Clare Her- itage Plan 2003-2007.

“I am delighted to see that the lo-

cal authority has played its part in establishing a framework for docu- menting unprotected early agricul- tural machinery, which played a sig- nificant role in the socio-economic development of this country over the last number of centuries,” said Ber- nadette Kinsella, Director of Serv- ices, Economic Development and Planning, Clare County Council.

“The west of Ireland is tradition- ally an agricultural region and this tradition has bequeathed a signifi- cant amount of farm machinery dat- ing from the late 19th and early to mid-twentieth centuries.

“Therefore, it 1s imperative that we develop a strategy for the conserva- tion and posterity of such items as seed drills, harrows, ploughs and rollers, horse carts, and harvesting

and haymaking machinery.”

Commenting on the audit, Cllr Pat Hayes, Chairperson of the Clare Heritage Forum, said that there is a sionificant gap in awareness when it comes to our agricultural heritage despite its fundamental impact on the socio-economic development of this country over the last number of centuries.

‘The Clare Heritage Forum is con- fident that this audit and its subse- quent promotion will help address that gap in Clare and also provide an effective template that can be used on a national and international lev- el,” he said.

‘For example, local authority herit- age offices in Galway and Donegal have already followed our lead by undertaking similar studies.

“We are confident that this au- dit will achieve its main objective, which is to uniquely inform as to the historical, geographical, eco- nomic and even scientific develop- ment of agricultural machinery in one county.”

Following the launch of the audit, 10,000 summary booklets will be made available at schools, libraries, museums and heritage centres across County Clare.

Dr Hugh Maguire of the Heritage Council will launch Antique Farm Machinery of County Clare at Clare Museum at 7.30pm on Monday, April 14.

The launch will also include an il- lustrated presentation on The Devel- opment of Clare Farm Machinery, 1800-1950.

KILNAMONA’S Nuala McDonnell last week walked away with a Certif- icate of Merit from the Teagasc/FBD Student of the Year Competition in Dublin.

Nuala, who hails from Cloongowna in Kilnamona was the only woman to make it into the closing stages of the competition.

She was one of six students to be presented with the certificates of merit by the Minister for Agricul- ture, Mary Coughlan, at the Dublin ceremony last Thursday.

Others to receive certificate were Maurice Bates representing the Port- laoise course, Thomas Mather from Kildare representing Gurteen Col- lege, James Gaffney from Ballyroe

east and Pallaskenry College, Joseph Keenehan from Roscommon repre- senting the Mountbellew College, Patrick Cronin from Cork represent- ing Clonbakilty College and Dermot Daly from ‘Tuam representing the Athenry course.

The overall prize for Student of the Year went to Monaghan farmer Eoin Kerr who represented the Teagasc Agricultural College in Ballyhaise.

After his Leaving Certificate, Eoin completed his FETAC Level 5 and 6 Certificate in Agriculture in Bally- haise Agriculture College, and com- pleted his work placement in New Zealand.

He is likely to enter a partnership with his father at an early date, as a means of expanding their dairy en- terprise. The home farm 1s already

a well established dairy farm of 180 acres, 105 cows and 460,000 litres of milk quota.

“I would like to congratulate all of the students here today on the awards they are receiving. They have clearly excelled in their respective courses,’ said Teagasc director, Professor Ger- ry Boyle.

“We in Teagasc are continuous- ly evaluating our education pro- erammes to ensure they meet the needs of the farmers of the future.

“We have looked at the delivery of courses to provide more flexibility to accommodate the modern student. We have looked at the course con- tent to ensure it equips the students of today and the farmers of tomor- row, and we are looking to prioritise the capital invested in our education

facilities in the future.”

Peter Fogarty from Wexford was presented with the second runner-up award by Minister Coughlan while William Doogan from Donegal re- ceived the third runner-up award.

“There is renewed interest in ag- ricultural education with numbers increasing despite the decline in the number of full-time farmers. De- mand for part-time courses is also strong,’ Director of Education and Development with Teagasc, Donal Ora

THE Health and Safety Authority is investigating an explosion and fire at Dromoland Castle, which has left one workman seriously injured and

another with minor injuries.

The two were working with a gas burner last Friday, sealing a window in the hotel, when there was an ex- plosion.

It is understood that a small gas

cylinder exploded, which promptly led to the fire breaking out.

One of the men – a 60-year-old from Lisdoonvarna – was engulfed in the flames and suffered 40 degree burns to several parts of his body.

He had to be airlifted to University College Hospital, Galway, where his condition was described as critical. He remains in hospital, where he is still being treated for his serious in- juries.

His colleague, a Kerry native, was also taken to hospital, with minor in- juries.

Both were employees of Michael McNamara builders in Dublin and were working together on the win- elev

The fire service used an aerial plat- form to lift the man from the roof, after he had been treated there.

The incident occurred before noon, as dozens of people were getting ready to attend a wedding. The ho- tel was evacuated. None of the group suffered any injuries and were al- lowed back into the hotel some time Eire

Very little damage was done to the hotel, as the fire did not spread from where it started.

Gardai, along with five fire units and a number of ambulances, attend- ed the scene. Gardai took statements from various witnesses and members of the Scenes of Crime Unit, based in Ennis, also attended the scene of the fire.

Representatives from the Health and Safety Authority also attended the scene and carried out detailed ex- aminations, in an effort to ascertain the cause of the blaze.

AN investment of €lb in Money- point power station announced by the ESB is expected to significantly reduce the carbon dioxide being real- ised into the west Clare atmosphere, as well as proving a vote of confi- dence in the station’s future.

Plans for the local power station for 2025 will see the electricity supply board attempt to build a so-called “clean coal” generating plant.

Clean coal is basically coal that has had the carbon dioxide extracted from it, thus preventing it from pol-

luting the atmosphere.

The ESB are facing one major diffi- culty in the west Clare element of its national €22 billion, 12-year invest- ment programme.

Commencement of the work on the clean coal-fired generating plant in Moneypoint is dependent on one major factor – that is, one has yet to be invented.

The ESB admit that no-one has yet arrived at a workable system of do- ing this, or of storing gas instead of releasing it into the atmosphere.

The ESB 1s confident, however, that such a solution will be found as huge

resources are being invested on re- search and development.

Meanwhile, Munister for State, Tony Killeen (FF) received confir- mation from the ESB that it is not going to adopt a proposal to build a gas-fired generating plant.

“The ESB’s announcement has consequences not only for environ- ment but for the local economy,” he said.

“For almost 30 years, Moneypoint has acted as one of the largest em- ployers in west Clare and has played a major part in the development of vibrant communities in the area.

“This announcement by the ESB that it is planning to invest in a clean coal-fired generating plant by 2025 will ensure the station’s viability.”

The new plant, if and when it goes ahead, 1s likely to produce 700 mega- watts of electricity, making it the big- gest producer in the State in today’s etsy

According to industry calcula- tions, that is enough power to supply 700,000 average households.

Work started on the Moneypoint project back in 1979. The station each year consumes two million Kevebate ey mrerey- 0B

THE first-time house buyer has re- treated to his bunker and is showing no signs of coming back out.

That is the view of leading auc- tioneer, Philip O’Reilly who was responding to the Homebond figures for the first quarter that show a 63 per cent drop in new house starts in Clare on the corresponding period last year.

New house starts in Clare for Janu- ary to the end of March showed that construction on 76 new houses com- menced.

This compares to the first quarter for 2007 where developers com- menced construction on 211 new homes.

Homebound accounts for 75 per cent of new house registrations and O’Reilly said that the Government needs to act in order to entice the in- vestor back into the market.

O’ Reilly remarked that since Octo- ber, there has emerged a new trend of a significant number of houses pre- built around Ennis waiting to be sold off.

This new phenomenon is in con- trast to the situation during the boom

years where a large percentage of houses were sold off from the plans of new estates.

O’Reilly said that the first time buyer is waiting for the market to bottom out. However, he said that he believes that the market may have already bottomed out and that first time buyers will now get very good value.

O’Reilly said that the Government only tinkered with stamp duty, but that stamp duty needs to be removed on houses under 1,200 sq ft.

Director of local building compa- ny, Keco Construction Ltd, Eugene

Keane acknowledged the drop in the number of registered homes for Homebond.

However, he said, “Ennis is still in a strong position. Supply of housing has kept in line with demand over the last number of years which has kept the prices reasonable and below the national average.”

Underlining its confidence in the local housing market, Keco cur- rently has five planning applications in the planning process, totalling 506 houses, in Ennis (317), Crush- een (83) and Newmarket on Fergus (66).

ENNIS Chamber and sponsors UI- ster Bank were in Ennis Golf Club last week to finalise details of the Golf Classic, which takes place at the club on April 24 and 25.

This 1s one of the premier social

and networking events for Ennis Chamber, with 200 golfers partici- pating from the business community along with their colleagues and cli- ents from Clare, the mid-west and around the country.

Friday’s launch at Ennis Golf Club was attended by Pat O’Hanlon, Head

of Clare Business Centre and Paul Mullane, Senior Manager Clare Business Centre; along with Ennis Chamber President, Niall Garvey; Golf Committee Chairperson, TJ Waters; and Ennis Golf Club’s Pat MacCarthy.

In respect of their sponsorship of

the Ennis Chamber Golf Classic 2008, Paul Mullane of Ulster Bank said, “We are delighted to support this event. Ulster Bank Clare Busi- ness Centre offers local support to businesses combined with the global strength of our parent RBS.

“We look forward to an enjoyable two days of golf. We are pleased to support Ennis Chamber of Com- merce, with whom Ulster Bank enjoy a long association.”

Also commenting on the occasion Chamber President Niall Garvey said, “Ennis Chamber is delighted to bring the golf classic back to the town of Ennis.

“We have received much welcomed support and input from our sponsors, Ulster Bank, in order to ensure a suc- cessful event.

“Despite the adverse weather con- ditions of the past number of months, Ennis Golf Club is in excellent con- dition. This promises to be a hugely enjoyable event that is not to be missed.”

Teams of four will play for a range of executive prizes; with the an- nouncement ceremony taking place at 9pm on April 25 in the Ennis Golf Clubhouse.

Tee times are available on the af- ternoon of April 24 and from early morning into the afternoon on Fri- day, April 25.

Teams of four are €600, while in- dividual players, at €150, are wel- comed to be teamed up. A three- course meal is also included for each Oitoe

Corporate sponsorship of tees/ ereens can be availed of at €200 each. Brochures and booking cards are available from Margaret Ney- lon, Ennis Chamber, 54 O’Connell Street, Ennis, 065 6842988. Early booking is advised in order to secure your preferred tee time.

CLARE Youth Theatre will per- form their production of the classic “To Kill a Mockingbird’ in Glor this Neto) .e

Based on the book by Harper Lee, the story is set in 1930’s Alabama at the height of the American Depres- sion and addresses the themes of racism, poverty, honour and rites of passage as seen through the eyes of a young girl.

The cast is comprised of teenagers from across Clare and the globe, in- cluding Ennis, Ballyvaughan, Lahi- nch, Liberia and Bosnia.

The cast have been rehearsing since last September every Saturday in Glor and, together with their direc- tor Eleanor Feely, have adapted the book for performance, scripted ad- ditional scenes, designed the set and are creating live music for the per- formance.

This is the third production by CYT. The previous shows were “The Story of Eyam’ in 2006 and ‘Alien Nation’ by Max Heffler in 2007.

Earlier this year, another cast, com- prising members of the CYT, pre- sented a show entitled ‘Streetscape’, directed by Theresa Leahy, which took a jaundiced look at the received

concepts and attitudes towards men- BDO N LoTR

Director Eleanor Feely said the cast were keen to meet the challenge of bringing an established classic to SRR SX or

She said, “This year we decided wed like to have a go at a classic. I love books, obviously, and I knew that this particular book was on the school courses. I thought I’d like to have a shot at it and bring the young people with me on another journey. I thought we could adapt it ourselves.”

Eleanor added, “The whole book is about prejudice, about fear of differ- ence more than anything else. People

usually associate the book with be- ing about racism. | don’t think that is its main theme. I think it is probably fear of difference as seen through the eyes of the young.”

The Clare Youth Theatre is an ini- tiative of the County Arts Office and is dedicated to excellence in artistic endeavor through developmental cre- ativity. The company 1s also aligned to the National Association of Youth Drama (NAYD), which allows ac- cess to national and international theatre events and practitioners.

‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ runs in Glor on April 10 and 11 at 8pm. Informa- tion and tickets from Glor box office.