Category: News

LITTER laws are criminalising landowners rather than people who engage in illegal dumping, a meeting has heard.

Councillors yesterday backed a motion calling for the “Litter Act to be amended to state that where there is a reasonable doubt that landowners are not penalized for illegal dumping”. The motion was put forward by North Clare councillor Michael Kelly (FF). At yesterday’s meeting of Clare County Council, Cllr Kelly explained that farmers are being hit with enforcement orders when rubbish is dumped on their land.

He said landowners are now “guilty until proven innocent”. He said he was aware of one incident where a farmer’s fence was cut and a sofa and armchair were thrown in.

He acknowledged that Council staff are doing everything they can to stop illegal dumping but farmers and landowners are still being penalized.

Cllr Pat Hayes (FF) said he had received numerous complaints from landowners about illegal dumping and encampments.

“There has to be protection for landowners. A lot of litter was dumped in my field and I had to take responsibility for it.

Cllr Joe Arkins (FG) said Council staff had been successful in identifying culprits and removing “lorry loads of rubbish”. He added, “We should engage in dialogue before we get into business of enforcement.”

Cllr PJ Ryan (Ind) told the meeting that “there is only one thing to be said and that the Act has to be changed.” Cllr Joe Cooney (FG) called for the imposition of “stiffer penalities”. Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) described the current litter legislation as “bad law”. He added, “It criminalises the victim rather than the culprit.”

Cllr Gerry Flynn (Ind) said the majority of people are compliant with the litter laws. He said there are only two environmental wardens in the county. “They are doing the best they can but there are not enough resources,” he added.

Cllr Arkins urged greater promotion of the Council’s 24-hour confidential litter hot-line. He said the number should be marketed on all of the Council’s publications, stickers and biros. “Everyone should be a litter warden,” he added. Cllr Kelly said people engaged in dumping are more likely to throw rubbish onto other people’s lands in the middle of the night rather than the middle of the day. He added, “The wording of the act has to be amended.”

Director of Servce, David Timlin confirmed that the Council have two full time environmental wardens. He said that there were other members of staff designated to remove litter and carry out clean-ups of areas around Clare.

FOUR of Clare’s prime tourism hotspots will come together this Friday to launch a major new ticketing strategy, which they hope can attract thousands of extra tourists to the Banner county in years to come.

By using a special Burren4Group ticket members of the public will now be able to access the Cliffs of Moher, the Aillwee Caves, Caherconnell Stone Fort in Carron and the Burren Centre in Kilfenora for a fraction of the previous costs.

Several thousands copies of the special ticket will be circulated to hotels and guesthouse around Ireland, allowing anyone access to all four tourism location for just € 18 – a saving almost half on the non-ticket price to enter the four sites.

The initiative is designed to both attract tourist to the area but to also encourage the more of the 700,000 tourists who visit the Cliffs of Moher each year to stay overnight in the area or possibly for a number of days or a weekend.

“This really came about following the realisation that we are living in recessionary times and people don’t have the money to go to all the different centres. This is a combination of offering people good value but also offering them something really special. We have the iconic Cliffs of Moher, Aillwee, the fort in Caherconnell and ourselves, so you have a bit of everything that you might want,” said Frances Connole of the Burren Centre.

“Hopefully that this will get people to stay longer in the area and ultimately that is what all of this is about. This is not a day trip, we have so many great facilities here are there really is something for everyone.”

The scheme will be launched on a pilot basis by the Minister for Tourism, Michael Ring (FG) in Kilfenora this Friday. It is hoped that the ticket will be rolled out on a widespread basis should it prove to be a success this year.

“If this is successful, we build on that success in future years. We don’t want to rush into anything. At the moment the ticket is aimed only for individual travellers but down the road we will look at things like family tickets and things like that,” continued Frances. “It is just too early to roll that all out now. We need to float the idea and make sure that people will be happy with it and that it will work. It is a new project and a big innovation for this region so we need to be sure before we proceed. I think people will be interested in it though. This is about working together and networking together instead of always looking over the water and being in competition. It is a good idea and I think that people will like it.”

THE Banner County’s outstanding contribution to elected politics since the foundation of the state 90 years ago was celebrated at Clare County Council headquarters of Áras an Chláir last Friday.

Public represenatives, past and present, who spanned 70 of those 90 years were present to hear An Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Eamon Gilmore hail the county’s “historic contribution” to politics and a local, national and international level.

Deputy Gilmore made his comments as he unveiled a Roll of Honour chronicling the record of service of every elected member of Clare County Council, Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann since independence.

“This scroll of service clearly identifies the names and the times of service of those who were elected to local and central government doing the past 90 years.

“This is significant because of the historical contribution of County Clare, that public representatives have made in County Clare and elections in County Clare have made, right back to the time of Daniel O’Connell, through the 1917 by-election in East Clare right through all the elections we have had in the history of the State,” said Minister Gilmore. “Clare has produced a disproportionate number of statespeople who have contributed to the life and progress of our country – it’s something that Clare can be immensely proud of.

“Here we have the names of the people who have served County Clare in Dáil Éireann, in Seanad Éireann, in government, on the County Council. It is right that the role they have played and the service they have given to their fellow citizens should be formally recognised,” he added.

“This Roll of Honour underlines the unswerving commitment and loyalty to the democratic principle of public representation by the named individuals during this period of our history,” said Mayor of Clare Christy Curtin. “It’s a permanent record of the public service and duty to the Banner County and will be the inspiration for present and future generations of Clare people to participate and engage fully with the democratic process.”

“This Roll of Honour marks the commitment and dedication of a lot of people, who have not asked what their county can do for them, but for what they can do for their county,” said county manager, Tom Coughlan.

A LOCAL woman who managed to get photos of a funnel cloud in the outskirts of Kinvara last week, says that she never feared getting caught up in a dangerous tornado.

Amateur photographer Kit O’Sullivan managed to capture the rare funnel cloud as it came over North Clare and South Galway last Tuesday evening, June 21. It is still unclear if the funnel cloud touched ground – thus making it one of the first ever tornadoes recorded in the Clare area.

“Myself and my sister Mary were looking out the window, watching the cloud because we could see it coming in and we knew it was a thunder cloud. The next thing we saw the funnel come out of the bottom of the cloud – it shot down, about half way down the sky from the cloud.

“We though straight away that it must be a tornado – just from watching all these American shows at the moment about tornadoes. As it happened I had the camera with me so I ran out and got a few pictures of the cloud. It is very hard to tell for sure but it certainly appeared to me that the cloud was over land and not still over the sea.

“I never thought that I might be danger at all. God no, my first thought was to get the camera out and get outside and get a few pictures. I love watching the weather, I love thunder storms and things like that so I am always looking at the sky to see what is going on. It is better than television.”

Instances of funnel clouds and mini-tornadoes are becoming more common on the west coast of Ireland. Locals people also spotted a similar funnel cloud close to the airfield in Spanish Point earlier this year.

“The weather is certainly changing. If you look at the weather we had last week and then the weather we had on Friday and Saturday – you forget that we are in the month of June,” continued Kit.

“When you see the severe winters that we are getting, that we have never gotten before, I think that this is a clear sign that the whole ecosystem is upside down and the funnel clouds are just an example of that.”

More pictures of the funnel cloud are now available on www.irishweatheronline.com.

A CLARE doctor has discovered a new form of gene therapy which could more than double the survival rate and life expectancy of people who suffer heart attacks.

Ennis man John O’Sullivan has completed a successful clinical trails on pigs and has just been granted a € 1 million budget to roll out clinical trials on humans over the next four years. Pigs were chosen as their hearts bear a close medical resemblance to humans.

Should the human prove as successful as the trials on pigs – his research will be used to manufacture a commercial drug which could save hundreds of thousands of lives every year.

The therapy works by using a substance secreted from adult bone marrow known as IGF1 to help strengthen the inner lining of arteries while also helping to prevent damaged heart cells from dying.

“We delivered a very exact, very low, level of IGF1 to the animal after the heart attack and we looked at how this effected cell death in the heart and heart structure. We found that even at very low doses this substance caused a significant change in the signals being sent off by dying hearts cells half an hour after the heart attack had taken place,” he told The Clare People .

“After 24 hours we noticed a significant reduction in the level of cell death in the heart. We looked again after two months and found a significantly improved heart function and structure.

“This is very encouraging and we have secured a grant to take this forward to human trials which will be starting in a months time.”

John is pioneered his groundbreaking work at the Centre for Research in Vascular Biology in Cork alongside Professor Noel Caplice. They have secured € 1 million to roll out human trial in Cork over the next four years.

“If this is successful this will change everything – it will be taken up everywhere and who knows what will happen,” continued John.

“In our trials, we created heart at- tacks which damaged on average 40 per cent of the heart and the use of the IGF1 reduced the death of cells in the affected areas by a half. On a longer term basis we were able to return heart function pretty much back to normal.”

John, who is from Castlewood Park in Ennis, earlier this year became the first Irish-based researcher to American College of Cardiology Young Investigator Award, while he also won this year’s Outstanding Young Person award by Junior Chamber International Ireland.

OVER 5,000 this people are set to descend on Miltown Malbay and district from this weekend for the annual Scoil Samhraidh Willie Clancy music festival that’s worth an estimated € 5m to the local economy.

The 39th festival, which commemorates the famous Miltown Malbay musician who died in 1973, will be officially opened this Saturday night by Sean Keane of The Chieftans, while a host of marquee names in traditional music will attend over the course of the event that runs from July 2 to 10.

“The key to the success of the Scoil Samhradh,” says festival Co-Director, Harry Hughes, “ is that we have always tried to maintain an excellence in the tuition that we offer ever year.

“This year we have the likes of Martin Hayes who comes to the festival every year, Edel Fox, Paddy Glackin, Mick Mulkerrins, Kieran Hanrahan and Rip Epping, while photographer Tony Kearns, who has been documenting the school over a long number of years will deliver the Breandán Breathnach Memorial Lecture, An Eye for the Music, which discusses the relationship between photography and Irish traditional music,” adds Hughes, who founded the festival back in 1973 with Muiris Ó Rocháin and Martin Talty.

For the past number of years, the Tuesday of summer school week has been devoted to celebrating the life and work of a musician who has made a significant contribution to the Irish musical heritage.

This year the honour goes to Clare’s own Peadar O’Loughlin, the Kilmaley flute and pipe player, who is regarded as one of the masters of the musical tradition.

The Peadar O’Loughlin tribute takes place on Tuesday next and will feature contributions from his friends and fellow musicians, will be coordinated by piper and RT presenter and producer, Peter Browne.

REMEDIAL works on 17 local authority houses in Scariff have been completed, at a cost of € 850,000.

The Mayor of Clare, Councillor Christy Curtin (Independent), was handed the keys of the 17 units at Connaught Road, Scariff, on Friday, following the completion of the project.

The project contract, which was awarded to Galway construction company Atlantic Developments Limited in October, involved upgrade works to the 17 tenanted properties in the estate. This included insulation, roofing, windows and doors replacement.

The houses are part of a batch of 31 homes which were constructed in the 1970s. The remaining 14 houses have since been purchased.

New heating systems, including high efficiency oil boilers supplemented with solid fuel stoves, have been upgraded to achieve a C1 Building Energy Rating (BER). Solar panels also have been provided on the roofs of four bungalows to achieve a high energy rating.

Other works include general environmental drainage and a new watermain, boundary treatment to all 31 houses, and improvement works to roads, public lighting and footpaths in the estate.

“The improvement to the energy efficiency of these houses in Scariff will make a great difference to the comfort factor for the occupants. I would like to acknowledge the excellent work carried out by the contractor and design team who successfully completed the project on time and within budget,” said Mr Curtin.

The Chairperson of the Council’s Housing Strategic Policy Committee, Cllr Patricia McCarthy (Independent), thanked residents for their “forbearance and co-operation while their homes were being upgraded”.

“Many residents voluntarily relocated for the duration of the works while those who remained in residence co-operated fully with the contractor and tolerated a level of inconvenience. They can now look forward to enjoying an improved quality of life in their upgraded homes,” she said.

The project funding of € 850,000 was provided by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

THERE was a large turnout in St Joseph’s Church in Whitegate on Friday as family and many friends gathered for Mass to remember a local priest and sportsman who died recently.

Canon Jim Mulvihill, a native of Capanthrane, Whitgate, passed away earlier this month aged 90. He is sadly missed by family members in Whitegate and Scariff and fondly remembered by those who shared his huge sporting enthusiasm.

He was the son of the late Johanna and Partick Mulvilhill and was one of five children – Anna, Maggie May, Tommie and Mikey.

He went to school at Lakyle National School and later attended St Flannan’s in Ennis.

Noted for his talent on the hurling field, Canon Mulvihill won several tophies when he played with the Ennis hurling nursery and he was part of the team which won the Canon O’Kennedy Shield against holders, St Finbarr’s of Farranferris. He also played for his native Whitegate.

When he wasn’t on the hurling field, Canon Jim was often to be found induging his other great sporting passion, fishing on Lough Derg.

He studied for the priesthood in St Patrick’s in Carlow and was ordained on June 3, 1945.

He was sent first to serve in the diocese of Tuscan in Arizona and then returned to Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales.

He was incardinated into the archdiocese of Cardiff in 1963 and was appointed as parish priest to Bromyard in Herefordshire in 1967. In 1997 he was appointed parish priest of St Basil and St Gwladys. He retired from that appointment in 2002 but continued to say daily Mass in the parish.

In 2005 he celebrated sixty years in the priesthood.

Canon Mulvihill was in constant contact with his native Clare and regularly welcomed visitors from the county.

He passed away in the care of the sisters and staff of Nazareth House, where he had lived since 2007.

Archbishop Georg Stack of Cardiff was the chief celebrant at Canon Mulvihill’s funeral Mass.

He is survived by his nephews and nieces: the Mulvihills in Whitegate, Marie, Pat, Jim Tom and Den; and im Scariff, the McMahon’s Paddy, Seanie, Noel, Michael and Mary; as well as many friends, both lay and clergy.

APPLICATIONS from people in Clare to have broadband provided under the Rural Broadband Scheme are fewer than from other counties across the country, it has been revealed.

In response to a query from The Clare People , a spokesperson for the Rural Broadband Scheme said that just 32 applications applications from areas in County Clare have been received to date, despite the fact that almost every area in the county is eligible to apply.

Only Ennis and a few other pockets in the county are ruled out of the scheme, but few Banner residents have opted to take advantage of it.

“Applications from Clare are definitely less than the national average but there is still some short time left for people to apply,” the spokesperson said.

Pointing out that access to broadband is vital for rural businesses and increasingly becoming a basic tool in homes and schools, the spokesperson said that it’s important that Clare people, who may qualify, get their applications in before the July 29 deadline.

The Rural Broadband Scheme was established to enable a basic broadband service to be provided to individual rural premises, which are not capable of obtaining a broadband service from existing internet service providers. The Scheme was set up in conjunction with the Department of Agriculture as a measure under the Rural Development Plan using funding from the European Agriculture Fund for Rural Development.

This first phase involves inviting and processing applications. In the second phase of the scheme, the department will check with existing internet service providers to see if they are willing to provide a service to the premises concerned. If none of the companies concerned are prepared to offer a service, then the application will progress to the next phase in the scheme in which the department will engage an internet service provider who will offer a basic internet service to applicants. While the department will be paying part of the cost of the infrastructure necessary to provide a service, the applicant will be responsible for paying the costs of the service itself.

It’s expected that the scheme should be completed by the end of 2012 at the latest.

Anyone interested can apply online by visiting the department’s website www.dcenr.ie and following the links for the Rural Broadband Scheme, by downloading an application from the website and sending it in the post or alternatively by calling 01 6782020 or call save the RBS on 1850 678100. The link includes a map of Clare showing the eligible areas.

THE new mayor of Kilrush has called for a new coalition of forces to emerge in the west Clare capital to ensure that the town becomes a growth hub the development in the next decade.

Mayor Ian Lynch made his comments after the annual general meeting of Kilrush Town Council on Monday office after taking the chains of office from fellow Fine Gael councillor, Liam Williams.

“Kilrush has a lot of things going for it,” Mayor Lynch told The Clare People, “but the key for the town going forward is that everyone works together as a unit, so that the town can be created as a destination for living, a destination for commercial and industrial activity and a destination for tourism.”

Cllr Lynch, who served as Deputy Mayor for the last year, was unanimously elected unto become First Citizen on Kilrush, while independent member, Cllr Mairéad O’Brien was elected Deputy Mayor.

“This council must stand strong and face the people of Kilrush and indeed West Clare that look to us for solutions and inspiration in how we can effect change,” continued Mayor Lynch.

“While there is no doubt that the coming 12 months and possibly coming years will indeed be tough, but I’m a great believer in the reliance of our people to adapt and innovate.

“Kilrush Town Council will have to adapt to a reduced budget in many areas that will affect the services we can offer and how we prioritise the needs of the town. I hope as Mayor in the coming year to encourage and promote practicable and speedy solutions to the everyday concerns of the people of Kilrush.

“Many of theses concerns, such as the condition of our local roads, support for children be it education, after school activities or for those with special needs or indeed the urgent need to address unemployment and our local health care services are in fact the common concerns of all the people of Kilrush and County Clare,” he added.

Cllr Lynch, who was first elected to Kilrush Town Council in 2009, was proposed for the mayor’s position by outgoing mayor, Liam Williams and seconded by former mayor, Marion McMahon-Jones.