Month: August 2008

A CLARE athlete, who won five medals at the World Transplant Games last year, is to seek interna- tional glory once again — and she has been boosted by a recent victory in her local golf club’s captain’s prize.

Lahinch woman Marie O’Connor arrived home from the Bangkok Games last September with two gold medals for golf, two silver medals for squash and the 200m, and a bronze for the 100m — and now she’s off to Wurzburg Germany, for the Euro- pean Transplant Games.

Ireland will send 24 athletes to the Games in Wurzburg, from August 31 to September 6, and they will be joined by family and friends. “It’s not about the medals, but about the chance to celebrate the gift of life. That’s what makes these Games so special,’ said team manager Colin AW avin

Marie stresses the importance of organ donors and the need to create a greater awareness of the benefit of organ donation. She underwent her second kidney transplant in 1998 after an unsuccessful transplant in 1996.

“IT was quite competitive before I got sick. I played football and cam- ogie. When the doctors said I said I couldn’t play contact sport I was dev- astated,’ she said.

“But my motto in life is that you don’t give up. I started to play golf and I really enjoy it.”

Just recently, she won the captain’s prize at the local golf club and she hopes this is a good omen in advance of the European Games, which aim to highlight the importance of organ donation and the benefits of healthy IVovauetoadevneletca omy ole) um

They also allow the athletes an op- portunity to give thanks for the gift of their transplants.

Marie first became sick just before Christmas in 1990. She was three months in hospital before her kidney problems were diagnosed.

After three and a half years on dialysis Marie received a kidney in 1996. “The dialysis is tough but you get used to it, it becomes a part of your life,” she said.

Unfortunately the transplant did not take, and the Clare received a second kidney donation in 1998. This year she will celebrate the tenth anniver- sary of the second transplant.

“I live for the moment. That’s what I have learned. You enjoy every day,’ added Marie.

For organ donor cards free text the word *“DONOR’ to 50050 or log on to www.ika.ie for more information.

You can follow the progress of the Irish team at the Games on www. transplantteamireland.com.

A COUPLE have told An Bord Pleanala that the spread of a quarry towards their home must be stopped in order to preserve their sanity. Earlier this year, Clare County Council granted planning to Mc- Grath Quarries to extend its business for another 30 years with a rock re- serve of seven million cubic metres. The move to extend the operation

by 45 acres comes with the company in a very strong financial position.

The most recent accounts to the Companies Office by McGrath (O’Callaghan Mills) Ltd show that the company’s retained profits at the end of March 2006 stood at €5.4 million.

However, the couple, Patrick and Maureen Minogue, living nearest to the multi-million euro quarrying op- eration in east Clare have appealed

to An Bord Pleanala.

In the appeal, they state, ““We have lived in our home since 1975 and the quarry was operational at the time we purchased the home, but at a significantly reduced scale. The quarry area was also a considerable distance…we obviously did not en- visage that the scale of quarrying at the site would develop to its present AoE

“Be that as it may, we do not ob-

ject to the quarrying operation, per se, and accept that the quarry exists at this location. Our main reason for appealing the permission is to main- tain a separation distance between our home and the quarry operation and to protect our water supply

“We submit that taking account of the noise impact associated with drilling, rock breaking haul trucks and their horns, blast vibration, dust emission during blasting, drilling

and hauling — we seek to establish a 250 metre buffer zone between our property and the active quarry area. “We object to the extension area and to the removal of the existing mature trees in this area to protect the integrity of our dwelling, our amenity and our sanity and retain the value of the dwelling. We believe the only realistic way to do this is to condition this separation in clear un- ambiguous terms in the permission.

THE third annual Clare Shout Festi- val is expected to attract thousands of visitors to Kilkishen on the weekend of September 19, 20 and 21 next.

The highlight of the weekend will be the competition to find the person who can best demonstrate the tradi- tional Clare Shout which is believed to date back to the first settlers in the Banner county.

The winner will be presented with a perpetual challenge cup along with a cash prize and the competition will be open to men and women of all aoe

The weekend will be opened with a cheese and wine reception on Friday night, September 19. This will be fol-

lowed by the keynote lecture Clare Heroes of the Caman and the Bow, by traditional music expert Seamus Mac Mathuna.

In his lecture Mr Mac Mathuna, a talented musician and composer, will pay tribute to some of the most famous Clare musicians and hurlers such as Willie Clancy, Paddy Canny, Tommy Daly, Jimmy Smyth, Brian Lohan and others.

The weekend will be packed with indoor and outdoor events to suit all ages. Full details will be announced later.

AN Ennis woman has moved to overturn a Clare County Council decision to refuse planning permis- sion for 16 luxury homes on a site she purchased for €1.8 million.

Last month, planning permission was refused to Therese McCarthy, a daughter of a well-known Ennis builder, Jack McCarthy, to construct 16 homes at Ballybeg on the out-

skirts of Ennis.

The purchase of the site was the sub- ject of a long-running legal wrangle that ended up in the Supreme Court which confirmed Ms McCarthy as the legal owner after she agreed to pay €1.8 million for the site.

Now in an appeal against the plan- ning refusal, Leahy and Conway Architects, on behalf of Ms McCa- rthy state that the reasons given for refusal of permission are “not sus-

eB bOe- |B) tome

One of the reasons cited for refusal was the lack of sewage treatment to accommodate the scheme but Ms McCarthy claims that at a pre-plan- ning discussion with the council she was informed that there would be ca- pacity for an extra 20 houses within the existing sewage system.

‘There 1s a need in Ennis for larger houses with reasonable access to the town centre. There are many peo-

ple who have the desire to construct larger houses and it is important to make provision for them.

‘We think this approach is accepted by Clare County Council. We do not wish to develop a standard housing estate. We feel there is a need for the provision of the house type we pro- pose in the order of 2,500 to 3,500 square feet.

“We believe that the proposal now before An Bord Pleanala would be a

significant contribution to the devel- opment of Ennis in that it would pro- vide for a type of development which is recognized as being necessary and which will take pressure off demand for urban generated rural housing.

“Our site is contained entirely with- in zoned land and the development we propose is the most appropriate type of development for this site.

A decision is due on the appeal later this year.

CLARE farmers have been urged to get moving in order to take advan- tage of the fifth Milk Quota Trading Scheme, with applications needing to reach the department by October 31. The new Scheme, which was an- nounced last week by the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith, will be the first of two Trading Schemes to allocate quota in respect of the 2009/2010 milk quota year.

Clare TD and Minister for State at the Department of Agriculture, Tony Killeen last week urged Clare farm- ers to take advantage of the scheme.

The Scheme will again be run in respect of each Co-op area, and will

be comprised of a priority pool and a market exchange. Sellers will con- tinue to contribute 30 per cent of the total quota offered for sale to the pri- Ou IAYA eee

The individual bid limit for buyers will remain at 80,000 litres, and the method for calculating the market- clearing price, including the 40 per cent price corridor, will remain un- changed.

The 3:2 ratio on the distribution of priority pool quota between young farmers and category | producers will be retained, as will the option for sellers in certain Co-op areas to sell at one or two cent per litre less than their original offer price.

“The main changes arise in the administration of the priority pool.

The maximum price at which quota is traded in the priority pool will be reduced to 10 cent per litre, unless the exchange price for that Co-op area drops below 10 cent, in which case the priority pool price will be the same as the exchange price,’ he said.

“In addition, participants in Milk Production Partnerships, whether new entrants or long-standing milk producers, will have access to quo- ta in their own right as individuals, whether on the basis that they are under 35 years of age or that their existing quota is less than 350,000 litres. Farm Managers participating in partnerships with established milk producers will have access to quota on the same basis.”

Meanwhile, it was confirmed last week that Clare’s REPS farmers un- able to spread slurry on their land due to the recent inclement weather conditions have been given a Six- week extension of the REPS slurry- spreading deadline.

According to Minister Killeen the measure applies to farmers in REPS 2 and REPS 3 who are required to have spread all the slurry produced during the winter housing period by 31 August.

“The atrocious weather conditions, particularly in County Clare and the Midwest Region, of the past two months have made it extremely dif- ficult for some local REPS farmers to get their slurry spread by the end of this month,” he said.

HARVEST season is officially on hold as a result of the poor weather. That was the message coming from Teagasc last week who urged Clare farmers to hold off on the harvest un- til the condition improve.

The farming advisory body has urged farmers to give priority to harvesting the most valuable crops first like malting barley, milling wheat and seed crops. They also sug- gest that farmers should have drying equipment ready to go when condi- tions are suitable for cutting and to take every opportunity to cut.

‘Farmers need to prepare machin- ery now for travelling under poorer

ground conditions, so that the har- vesting opportunities can be availed of when they arise,’ said a Teagasc spokesperson.

‘Machinery such as combines, si- lage harvesters, tractors, trailers, and balers can all operate more effec- tively under poorer soil conditions by making modifications to the tyres on these vehicles. Ground pressure can be reduced by fitting larger tyres, working at lower tyre pressures or possibly fitting dual wheels.

“On some livestock farms, dairy cows and beef cattle have been re- housed due to flooding of grassland and to avoid further poaching of the land and subsequent deterioration of grass utilisation.”

On dairy farms Teagasc are recom- mending that a flexible approach to grazing during this period be adopt- ed. Preferably graze paddocks with lower covers, provide larger grazing areas to livestock, offer fresh grass after each milking and use back fences to protect grazed areas.

Recent Teagasc research at Moore- park has shown that on/off grazing (allowing cow’s access to grass for a limited time) is an approach that can be used to maintain cows at grass during periods of wet weather similar to what we are now experi- encing.

To sustain high levels of perform- ance from grass, cows should be given 3-4 hours access to grass after

each milking. There is no require- ment to supplement these cows with additional feed while they are in- doors if farm covers are on, or above target. On drystock farms, Teagasc are recommending that producers move livestock to higher ground and drier fields to reduce poaching and to consider re-housing livestock, es- pecially bulls, if grazing conditions deteriorate further. The wet summer may also lead to an increased risk of liver fluke in sheep.

With the increased level of building activity on farms this year, Teagasc are advising farmers to take steps to protect new and existing storage tanks from damage caused by rising water levels.

THE hopes of County Clare now sit squarely on the shoulders of 27-year- old farmer Des Quinlivin, who will represent the county at this years FBD Young Farmer of the Year Competition.

The young dairy farmer was last week announced as this year repre- sentative for this years competition, which is ran by Macra na Feirme in partnership with the IFA.

Des will pit his wits against the cream of young farmers from all over the country in the national final, which takes place in the Newpark Hotel in Kilkenny on September | and 2nd.

The final adjudicating panel will include Bertie Ahern as Chairperson of the adjucation panel, Willie Fahy (IFAC Chief Executive), Dr Seamus Crosse (Director of Agriculture Re- search at Teagasc), Donal Fitzgibbon (Business and Community Training Consultant), Justin McCarthy (Live- stock editor, Irish Farmers Journal) and former Macra na Feirme presi- dents Seamus Phelan and Joe Healy.

The aim of this prestigious compett- tion, run by Macra na Feirme in part- nership with the IFA, is to recognise and reward the top young farmers in the country. Entrants are judged according to a number of criteria i1n- cluding farm business initiative and innovation, levels of farm efficiency

and enterprise quality, farm safety and environmental protection aware- ness, as well as agricultural knowl- edge and community involvement.

Des will now go forward to com- pete for the national prize of travel bursary worth €2,500 euro and €1,000 euro spending money.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of Mac- ra’s Agricultural Affairs committee, Eddie O’Donnell, last week wel- comed a reduction in the price of milk quota in the priority pool un- der the Milk Quota Trading Scheme announced by Agriculture Minister Brendan Smith together with allow- ing individual access to milk quota for partners in Milk Production Part- nerships.

O’Donnell said it was an important step forward for the dairy industry that partners in Milk Production Partnership are treated as individu- als for the purpose of accessing milk quota from the milk quota exchange and priority pool.

“Individual access to acquire milk quota coupled with opening up of partnerships to non dairy farmers and allowing farm managers enter partnerships will make partnership farming more accessible and help attract new blood into the industry,” he said.

‘“‘Macra had consistently lobbied for the creation of new partnership arrangements to attract young peo- ple into the industry.”

A BOOK commemorating a highly successful five-year rural art initia- tive in Clare will be launched next month at the Burren College of Art in Ballyvaughan. Since 2003 some 16 Irish and international artists have participated in Ground Up, Clare Arts Office’s rural arts project. This resulted in 12 temporary public art- works being commissioned in vari- ous rural contexts in the county.

“It seemed clear to me that some- thing needed to be done to address the position of visual arts in the rural areas of Clare. Down the years visual art has always been for urban peo-

ple in an urban setting,’ said Fiona Woods of the Clare Arts Office.

“The idea was to challenge artists to bring their work into a rural set- ting for the local people. Firstly there is no infrastructure – no galleries or anything like that.

“So we decided to make that into a strength by challenging ourselves to make art in that context and to make it relevant for the people who live in these areas.”

Ground Up features the work of par- ticipating artists Vladimir Arkhipov (Russia), Amanda Dunsmore, Maria Finucane, Paul Forder (UK), Pa- tricia Hurl, Tamas Kaszas (HUN), Maria Kerin, Aileen Lambert, John

Langan, Fiona O’Dwyer, Deirdre O’Mahony, Aine Phillips, Therry Rudin, Sean Taylor, Vince Wall and Fiona Woods.

“All of the works are temporary public works or projects. There was a huge range on the art – we had comics and land art, work set in the centre of rural communities and ones which were more hidden away in the country for people to discover.

‘The book focuses on the different strands of the project and each of the artists, but along with every artist is an essay commissioned on the sub- ject of public and rural art. That was to give it a bit more weight as a dis- cussion point rather than a document

OMIM one

“We have also commissioned a two hour documentary from Clare film- maker Fergus Tigue which will be going out with the book. It tracks the works being made and gives a real insight to the process inside Ground Up.”

The book will be launched on Wednesday, September 17, at the Burren College of Art in Bally- vaughan and on Friday, September 26, at the Atrium of the Temple Bar Gallery in Dublin

For more information on_ the Ground Up commissions check Db www.shiftingground.net/O02_ projects_about.htm.

A PIONEERING new initiative, de- signed to map and conserve the sea- life around the Irish coast began in Doolin last weekend.

Sea Search is the first course of its kind ever to be held in the country and the organisers believe that it will prove a critical step in the fight to preserve precious fish stocks and plant life.

The course, which is organised by the Burren Sub Aqua Club, gives divers the skills required to create the first map of the sea life off Ireland’s coast. “This 1s the first time a course

like this has ever been tried in Ire- land. It’s a bit of a test in many ways, and the Irish Underwater Council might decide to broaden it out around the country,’ said Tadhg O’Brien of the Burren Sub Aqua Club.

“The long-term goal of this is to create a map of the sea-life and plants around [Ireland and track how that is changing. “Sea Search aims to use sports divers to record marine life in their particular areas and to build up a database as to what is happening with the marine life over time. This is critical information for the bigger, long-term goal of preserving the ma- rine environment into the future.”

Undertaking work of this kind is aimed at experienced divers with good experience under their belts.

“It’s a simple enough idea, where divers just have to take note of the animal and plant life that they see when they dive in specific spots. The course will train divers up to become observers and to have enough infor- mation to recognise different species and record what they see,” continued Mr O’Brien.

“The basic equipment is a persons eyes and a simple slate for recording what you find and possibly a camera. It’s a simple process in itself but the key is to have the knowledge about

what you are looking for. The course is really for qualified divers. You have to be comfortable with all the other things involved in diving so you can concentrate on looking at what is around you.”

For more information § contact the Burren Sub Aqua Club on 086 8180044.

IT’S all happening in Corofin this weekend. A drama of epic propor- tions is about to unfold, and the peo- ple of the locality have been invited to come along and enjoy the show.

On August 30 a mock wedding and garden fete will take place at Clifden House, with all money raised going to the refurbishment of St Patrick’s Hall. The event, which will include performers from the All-Ireland Drama Champions, the Corofin Dra- matic Society, will see well-known local socialite Ms Matilda Forde- Cortina marry a person of her fathers choosing.

If she fails to marry before sunrise on her 30th birthday on August 31, the family fortune bequeathed to her by her late grandfather Colonel Bar- tholomew Simpson-Prankster will be lost.

“Well it’s not much of a marriage of convenience but I don’t know who the gentleman groom is just yet. I believe that my father way be short- listing a few eligible bachelors as we speak,” said Ms Matilda.

“Unfortunately for me my heart lies elsewhere, just between me and you, I am in love with my gardener. He is my true love. But my father doesn’t approve, he believes that the a simple gardener is below our station in the

community.

“We have invited all the local peo- ple to the wedding. The family are putting on a great spread including a hog roast, live entertainment and the straw-boy. We will also be opining up the estate to the local classes of Corofin and we will have games for the little ones.

“I think it’s going to be a day of high drama. My heart does lie else- where, but if I don’t marry the man of my fathers choosing our fortune will be lost. I think it will a day of surprises.

“As it 1s a wedding, people should look their best. While we don’t want anyone to outshine me, the bride, we

will be giving a prize for the best costume on the day,” she said.

Tickets for this wedding are now on sale locally at a cost of €40. Other than the Forde-Cortina family the main beneficiary of this event will be Corofin Parish Hall with all monies raised going towards a planned ma- jor renovation project.