Month: January 2012

AN ON-FARM slaughter scheme, which is available in major beef-producing counties such as Meath and Kildare, would save Clare farmers thousands of euro and stop viable beef going straight to the knackers yard.

According to Clare County Councillor Paul Murphy (FG), Clare farmers with injured animals are being penalised on the double, as on-farm slaughtering is not available to farmers with cattle with minor injuries.

The Clarecastle councillor said that animals with a broken bone, who have not “fallen”, are being refused by abattoirs when taken there by the farmer for slaughter.

“These mildly hurt animals are being turned away from the abattoir and the animals have to be put down and the meat disposed of,” he told members at the January adjourned meeting of the council.

The farmer is then at a financial loss on the double, he explained. Firstly, he has the loss of the value of the animal, and then has to pay a hefty sum to have its remains disposed of.

He called on the agriculture minister to review the efficiency of the onfarm slaughtering services scheme, particularly where an animal with a broken limb, but who is otherwise healthy, can still be transported humanely to the abattoir rather than that animal be classified as a fallen animal.

Cllr Pat Burke (FG) told the members that there is a farm slaughter scheme in place, where the animal is shot and bled out on the farm.

He raised concerns that the meat can be damaged when dragged into the trailer during such a process, however, and suggested that the ideal scenario would be to see these animals slaughtered in an abattoir.

The farm slaughter scheme does not seem to be available in Clare.

Cllr Michael Kelly (FF) said, “During a recession, it is unfortunate that the farmer is left with a loss of up to € 1,000 to € 1, 500.

“Bringing the animal to the factory would be less destructive for everyone,” he said.

Ennis councillor Tommy Brennan (Ind) raised concerns about the safety of meat from an animal with a minor injury, which was slaughtered on a farm.

“Would this go in for public con- sumption and who would decide if it is safe for human consumption?” he asked.

“I think where possible it would be safer to transport the animal to the abattoir.

“For the on-site process, there would be a vet to say if it was safe for animal consumption,” answered Cllr Joe Arkins (FG).

Supporting the motion, the mayor, Cllr Pat Hayes (FF), said that the council was asking for a change in policy to allow animals with minor injuries to be brought to the abattoir as soon as possible rather than to the knackers yard.

THE people of Clare have been urged to engage in a period of “civil disobedience” in protest at new septic tank laws and the household charge.

The call was made Independent councillor James Breen who said people should bring the country to “standstill”.

Cllr Breen was speaking at a special meeting of Clare County Council held to debate new legislation that will require homeowners to register their septic tanks for a € 50 fee.

Cllr Breen was strongly critical of the new Water Services (Amendment) Bill. He said that instead of forcing new fees on hard-pressed homeowners, the Government should look instead at abolishing town councils and the Seanád. He also called for a reduction in the amount of councillors sitting on local authorities. “I am speaking against myself on this,” he said.

Cllr Cathal Crowe (FF) said that while there was a need for a proper and effective water supply in the country, the manner in which the new legislation is being imposed on rural dwellers “is entirely unfair”.

He added, “Rural Ireland needs to be as equal as urban Ireland and the Government hasn’t shown that.”

Cllr Michael Kelly (FF) said rural homeowners have already paid for water services through planning regulations. He said there remained a lot of unanswered questions in relation to the inspection process, standards and the role of inspectors.

He continued, “It will affect the pockets of thousands of country people. We will discuss no more important motion for a long time.”

Cllr Gabriel Keating (FG) acknowledged the concerns of rural communities but said the Minister for the Environment was determined to introduce the legislation in a “step by step” basis.

Cllr Joe Cooney (FG) said there had been a lot of “scaremongering” on the issue.

He added, “It’s essential there is grant aid.” Cllr PJ Kelly (FF) said the legislation is being “rushed through”.

MEMBERS of Clare County Council have rejected claims that new septic tank laws will have no impact on homes in urban areas.

Critics of the new water services Bill have claimed that it will unfairly target rural areas by imposing high upgrade costs while urban dwellers will not be penalised. However at a special meeting of the council called to debate the new Water Services Bill, councillors rejected the suggestion that it would create a divide between rural and urban communities.

Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) said that the highest density of septic tanks occurred around urban areas such as Ennis (east and west) and Kilrush. “It’s not simply a rural/urban issue,” he added.

Cllr Patricia McCarthy (Ind) said that the new legislation would affect both rural and urban areas. She said homeowners are “genuinely scared” by some of the comments being made on the issue. She said that the view has been out forward that most of the septic tanks in the county would fail inspection. She said this was not the case.

Mayor of Clare, Cllr Pat Hayes (FF) said communities in small villages could struggle to upgrade sep- tic tanks because of a lack of space. Cllr Pat Keane (FF) said a simple solution could be found if the Government agreed to pay homeowners to upgrade their wastewater systems. Members agreed to pass three motions calling for the Government grant scheme to be put in place to assist with the upgrading of septic tanks. A motion proposed by Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) and seconded by Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) also stated that “time allocated to householders to upgrade their septic tank systems should reflect evidence from on the ground inspections needed to quantify cost, risk of pollution, appropriate grant aid etc.”

FIGURES from Clare County Council show that approximately 31,000 septic tanks in the county could face inspection under new water services laws.

A countywide breakdown shows that the highest number of septic tanks are located in the River Fergus catchment area (11,700). There are 8,400 in the West Clare area, 7,600 in the Lough Derg area and 3,400 in South Clare.

The figures, which were taken from the Water Framework Directive Reports, were presented at a special meeting of Clare County Council on Wednesday.

The Water Services (Amendment) Bill is currently being debated in the houses of the Oireachtais. It is expected to be enacted in 2013.

Households that have septic tanks will have to pay a € 50 five-year registration fee. Concern has been raised about the impact of the Bill, with critics claiming that householders will be forced to spend thousands of euros to upgrade septic tanks.

In a report to councillors, Paul Mo- roney, Senior Engineer Environment, outlined the main aspects of the Bill. He stated that the “principal requirement of the proposed legislation is that the owner of a septic tank is required to maintain and operate their septic tank in a manner that does not cause risk to human health or the environment.”

He added, “This requirement is in the best interest of preserving the existing environment and is consistent with the approach in other environmental legislation.”

Mr Moroney explained that under the proposed new bill, the council would be required to establish and maintain a detailed register of septic tanks located in its functional area. Owners of septic tanks will be required to register them with the local authority. The certificate will be valid for a period of five years.

Mr Morney stated that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is charged with appointing inspectors and establishing and maintaining a register of septic tank inspectors.

On the powers of EPA inspectors, Mr Moroney explained, “Inspectors will have the power to examine, take samples, take photographs, examine sub-soil, obtain information and inspect records of maintenance servicing or operation of a septic tank. An inspector may not enter premises without the permission of the occupier.”

Mr Moroney continued, “Once notification of an inspection has been provided by a local authority it will be an offence for a person to prevent an inspector from entering a premises, obstruct or impede the inspector or provide false or misleading information to an inspector.”

If the EPA finds that a septic tank is “causing or is likely to cause a risk to human health or the environment” they are required to issue an advisory notice to the owner.

A person who does not agree with the results of the first inspection can request a re-inspection at a fee not exceeding € 200. A person who does not agree with an advisory notice issued after the re-inspection can appeal the notice to the District Court.

Mr Moroney added that it will be an offence for the council not to comply with directions from the EPA.

He told the meeting that the new legislation would apply to all domestic wastewater treatment systems.

THE products used to keep toilets clean and germ free could be doing more harm than good.

That’s according to one county councillor who has taken aim at cleaning products such as Toilet Duck and Domestos.

Independent councillor PJ Ryan told a special meeting of Clare County Council on Wednesday that chemicals are causing damage to septic tanks.

Cllr Ryan (Ind) was speaking during a debate on new water services legislation that will require homeowners to register their septic tanks with Clare County Council.

Concern has also been expressed that many homeowners will not be able to meet the cost of upgrading septic tanks that fail inspections.

Cllr Ryan criticised the new Bill saying it is being “rushed through” and describing it as a revenue collecting exercise.

However he added that the “biggest problem with septic tanks is that there are too much chemicals going into them”. He explained that chemicals contained in cleaning products are killing bacteria that ensure the smooth running of the septic tanks system.

Cllr Ryan said, “This all happened since people got it into their heads that they must have a perfectly clean loo.”

He said that while homeowners will be hit by the new legislation, “these people that are producing the chemicals don’t seem to be called in at all.”

He added, “We’d be far better of spending money educating people rather than penalising them.”

Paul Moroney, Senior Engineer with the council’s Environment de partment, told the meeting that there are “reasonably stringent” European laws exist regarding cleaning products. He said chemicals couldn’t contain elevated levels of phosphates.

Concern was also expressed that homes in the west of Ireland will fall foul of the new regulations due to poor soil quality in the region.

Mr Moroney acknowledged that soil quality could present “significant challenges” in areas of East and West Clare. He said soil percolation problems may also emerge in limestone areas of the county.

KILKEE has been identified as the most dangerous place in Ireland to have a stroke or heart attack with a new report showing the average travel time between the West Clare village and the nearest 24-hour hospital now 69 minutes.

The research, which was completed by Professor Rob Kitchin of NUI Maynooth, also show that Lisdoonvarna is was the third most dangerous town with a 59-minute average travel time to the nearest 24-hour hospital.

Head of the Kilkee Rescue Service, Manuel DiLucia, said that the lack of quick access hospitals is costing lives in West and North Clare. Mr DiLucia himself suffered a heart attack in 2009, at which time it took him 75 minutes to reach the regional hospital in Limerick.

“It is just not good enough for a local community to be so far away from essential services. We have ongoing situation here in Kilkee and when we call the ambulance it takes such a long time to get to hospital. The hospital people are the best people in the world – they can’t help the fact that it going to take more than an hour to get someone to Limerick,” he said.

“The one saving grace is that many of the situations that we deal with concern an incident at sea. And in that situation we can call the Shannon-based rescue helicopter and 70 or 80 per cent of the time they will be able to come and help. In that case they are in Limerick in half an hour.

“But that is no comfort for someone who has a heart attack or a stroke. In my opinion anyone who feels a heart-attack or a stroke coming on should make their way down to the beach and in that way they can call the helicopter and be in Limerick in a reasonable amount of time.

“I think that is a workable solution and the next time I get a heart attack I will be getting into my car and making my way to the beach. That is for sure.”

According to Professor Kitchin, his research will probably be used to indicate where cuts can be made instead of identifying gaps in services.

“It’s probably more likely to be used for where you rationalise rather than where you look to invest or develop,” he said.

THE Minister for Transport, Leo Varadkar, had revealed that there were up to 1200 military flights through Shannon Airport in 2011, carrying nearly 250,000 US troops.

A breakdown of these figures has revealed that over 600 troops passed through Shannon every day in the 12 months up to December 31. Details of troop numbers were revealed by Minister Varadkar after a question was tabled by Sinn Féin deputy, Padraig Mac Lochlainn.

“My Department does not collate information with regard to the number of military troops on board civilian aircraft,” said Minister Varadkar. “However, on the basis of information collected by the Dublin Airport Authority, I understand the number of troops that have passed through Shannon Airport in 2011 was under 250,000,” he added.

“The figures make a mockery of the notion of Irish neutrality, and show that successive governments have relinquished all interest in maintaining an independent Irish foreign policy,” said a spokesperson for Shannonwatch.

Between 2001 and January 2011 there were 12,154 military stopovers in Shannon, carrying 2,0300,925 troops, while 11,995 return flights have accounted for 2,029,365 military personnel over the same period.

The 2001 to 2011 figures revealed that the peak period of Shannon’s use in US military operations came in 2005, when 1,973 flights passed through the airport, carrying 335,847 passengers, over double the amount that had passed through the previous year.

The build-up of troop manouvres started in 2003, before and after President Bush ordered an invasion of Iraq on March 19 of that year.

Meanwhile, following another Dáil question tabled by Deputy Mac Lochlainn the Minister for Transport, Alan Shatter has revealed that it nearly costs € 1m a year to police Shannon Aiport.

“The total cost of the assistance provided by the Defence Forces to An Garda Síochána at Shannon Airport during 2011 was € 259,739. This figure comprises the cost of Security Duty Allowances, rations and fuel,” said Minister Shatter.

“I am informed by the Garda authorities that the cost of policing arrangements at Shannon Airport for 2011 is € 994,052,” he added. These figures represent an increase of almost € 200,000 on the 2010 figures.

DEVELOPING new routes out of Shannon Airport has been identified as key to growing tourism in the Mid-West region as Clare gears up to position itself for the ‘The Gathering’ project that aims to bring over 300,000 extra visitors into Ireland in 2013.

In announcing its blueprint for tourism in the mid-west, Fáilte Ireland, has pledged to play its part in driving new business at Clare’s international airport – a commitment that was de- livered in the same week that passengers numbers at Shannon reduced to their lowest since 1994 when 1.5 million passengers were recorded.

It was revealed that 1.6m passengers used the airport in 2011, a figure that Fáilte Ireland’s head of operations in the region, Fiona Monaghan, said can be improved by the development of “a close working relationship with industry practitioners in the destination to grow international business through the development of authentic tourism experiences.

“Under our Sales Connect initiative, Fáilte Ireland will continue to work closely with Shannon Airport in the development of making the business case to support new route development into the region,” she added.

Fáilte Ireland’s new commitment to working with the airport to try and drive the region’s tourism product was announced in tandem with the launch of the Wild Atlantic Drive initiative at a briefing at the Radisson Hotel in Meelick on Wednesday last.

“Although 2011 was an encouraging year, there is no room for complacency,” sais Fáilte Ireland chief executive, Shaun Quinn. “We must all remain focussed on doing all we can to maintain a momentum towards recovery.

“Fáilte Ireland, through a mixture of marketing, supporting tourism businesses and developing attractive tourism destinations, will work closely to boost the full potential of the Shannon region in 2011,” he added.

“A key focus for 2012 will be the development of clearly defined destination development plans for West Clare,” said Fiona Monaghan.

“Key elements of the destination plans will be to maximise the sig- nificant investment in tourism product in the destination over the last two years and to have a strategic approach to future developments.

Looking to the east of the region, the Lakelands destination has a clearly defined work programme for the Lough Derg zone including the development of canoe trails, a tourism signage plan and a series of themed itineraries linking in to the overall Lakelands strategy. Fáilte Ireland will work closely with the Lough Derg Marketing Group in the implementation of these plans,” she added.

ONE of Clare’s smallest primary schools was in the spotlight this week as the Department of Education published its Whole School Evaluation Report. As one of the many small rural schools nationally under threat of closure, the department recommended that the board of management of Bal tard National School should consult with key stakeholders regarding the future viability of the 100-year-old school.

Situated close to the village of Doonbeg, the school enrolment on the day of inspection last March was just seven. The report questionned what it described as the “erratic enrolment at the school.” “Due to the low and fluctuating enrolment trends, the school’s viability is in question,” it said. “The board reports that children from the local, indigenous population attend other nearby primary schools by choice. The school rolls indicate that many pupils enrol for short periods in the school. A very small number of pupils have attended Baltard National School for the period of their full primary education during the last 10year period. In light of these facts, it is recommended that the board commence a process of consultation with key stakeholders regarding the future viability of the school.”

The Board of Management responded to the comments, stating it was in consultation with the key stakeholders regarding the future viability of the school and is in the process of making a submission to the Department of Education and Skills.

“In the past number of years, the Board of Management have been aware of the challenges faced by the school regarding enrolments. They have liaised with Rural Resettlement Ireland and still continue to do so.

“Rural Resettlement Ireland have been supportive over the years and continue to be. On a positive note, housing is readily available and we hope to promote this via a website which the BOM are currently considering developing in order to further promote the school,” it said.

The report was positive about the day-to-day running of the school, however. It stated that the building and grounds were very well maintained. It also praised the recently appointed school principal who it said is “strongly committed to the development of the school.”

CLARE County Council is finally set to deliver its verdict this week on whether a move to provide top-class sports amenities for the East Clare catchment of Killaloe and Ballina has the backing of the planning authority.

The Ballina/Killaloe Sports and Development Facilities Development Company is behind plans to develop two new full-size playing pitches, an all-weather pitch, flood-lit training areas, walking and cycling trails, changing and carparking facilities at a site in Moys, Killaloe.

The planning application for the development was lodged on June 15 last.

An original deadline of November 9 last year was set for a final decision date on the proposal.

However, the decision was delayed on foot of a request from the planning authority for further information, which was duly submitted by the applicants on December 22 last.

The Ballina/Killaloe Sports and Development Facilities Development Company plan represents the second major sports-related activity earmarked for Killaloe in the past year.

In May, conditional planning permission was granted for an ambitious club/community project being promoted by Smith O’Briens at its base on Shantraud.

That development includes a new clubhouse, changing rooms, a sports hall, meeting rooms, a hurling wall, an astro-turf pitch and a spectator stand.

A second application was submitted by the club for the development at Shauntraud on December 23 last, with a decision date from the council set for February 25 next.

The Smith O’Briens club initiative is set to be funded by members of the local community themselves.

This will operate through an investors’ draw, whereby one thousand people will pay € 4 a week into the development kitty – a contribution that works out at € 17.33 a month and € 208 over the year.

“For that, we will have a draw every month giving away € 3,700 in cash prizes,” revelaed Tony O’Brien of Smith O’Briens club.

“There will be 20 prizes, ranging from the top prize of € 1,000 to two € 500 prizes, two € 250 prizes, and all the way down to eight € 50 prizes.

“The plan is to develop under the umbrella of the GAA, but it will be a community facility that will be open for everyone,” he added when the club launched its novel fundraising scheme to pay for the development.