Tag Archives: clare county council

A training exercise testing the response capabilities of Shannon Foynes Port Company, local authorities and other organisations who operate in the vicinity of the Shannon Estuary will take place at Spanish Point on Wednesday and Thursday of next week. The simulated event, which is being hosted by Clare County Council on behalf of the Shannon Estuary Anti-Pollution Team (SEA-PT), will centre on a major spillage of crude oil having occurred from an oil exploration platform located approximately 220km off the south west coast of Ireland and oil coming ashore at Spanish Point. Other parameters for the exercise will include notification that the source of the pollution has been brought under control and that there have been no casualties on the oil exploration platform.

RATS have been spotted near a house in Ennis that has been used as a dumping ground, it has been claimed, as calls were made to address illegal littering described as a “plague” on the county. Rubbish has been dumped behind the house on the Gort Road for the past two years, according to Councillor Tom McNamara. At this week’s meeting of the Ennis Municipal District, the councillor said, “When the Environment Section of Clare County Council have fully investigated the illegal dumping of waste and cannot find anyone responsible, they contact the area office to remove it to landfill. What process has the area engineer in place to insure that this waste is removed to landfill?” He gave an example of the house on the Gort Road, saying, “There has been sightings of rats in the vicinity. I request this waste to be removed to landfill immediately.” Eamon O’Dea, senior executive engineer, responded, “The municipal district office is tasked …

THE number of places available for students to study nursing in Ireland should be increased, according to Councillor Gabriel Keating. At a recent meeting of Clare County Council, he said, “An increase in points is being driven by the shortage of undergraduate places in our universities and institutes of technology. “The number of placements in general nursing programmes reduced from 1,870 places in 2009 to 1,500 places in 2015, due to the HSE decision that year to reduce the number of places as a cost-saving measure, given that as part of their education trainee nurses receive a payment when there are on placement in hospitals.” He said that nursing courses are becoming increasingly difficult to access. “For example, midwifery and nursing courses in UCC were both 445 points, while general nursing at UCD, IT Tralee and Trinity were all 425 points. “It is clear at this stage that the only way forward is to allow the 13 nursing schools to …

DRONES could soon be flying over the skies of County Clare in a bid to combat the “scourge” of illegal dumping. Clare County Council has confirmed it is considering using drones as part of efforts to tackle dumping. The council is investigating the potential of working alongside the Civil Defence, who already have a drone. Details of the plans emerged at this week’s meeting of the Ennis Municipal District, where Councillor Johnny Flynn stated, in some cases, that the dumping is part of “a well organised criminal activity”. He urged the use of “smart technology” including drones to catch those responsible. He said the drones could be used to identify areas where dumping is being carried out, and “hopefully identify the culprits”. “We need to improve our use of smart technology to catch these people; a lot of these people are mobile. This dumping is not just anti-social behaviour, it is criminal activity and, in many cases, it’s organised criminal …

LEGALISING the prescription of medicinal cannabis is an idea whose time has come, according to Clare County Council. At Monday’s meeting, Councillor Clare Colleran Molloy put forward a motion that the council “ask the Minister for Health Simon Harris to prioritise legislation legalising the prescribing of medicinal cannabis in Ireland, where those suffering and in need, as highlighted by the recent walk of Vera Twomey across the country, will have their lives hugely improved.” Ms Twomey had walked from Cork to Dublin in an attempt to draw attention to the issue. Her motion was supported by Councillor Ann Norton. “For a lot of people, medication doesn’t take away the severity of the pain,” she noted. Regarding medicinal cannabis, she said it could be “legalised and monitored like other drugs”. She added that many patients already use the drug illegally and can be fined up to €2,500 for a first offence and imprisoned for subsequent transgressions. While she said she wouldn’t …

Participants of the Embrace for Arts & People with Disabilities Programme have been taking advantage of the fine spell of weather by relocating to Dromore Woods to create environmental art works with artist and facilitator, Alan Shoosmith. Run by Clare County Arts Office and supported by the Arts Council of Ireland, the Embrace Programme for Arts and People with Disabilities provides opportunities for individuals to engage with a wide range of art forms. With just three weeks to go until the annual Embrace event at Glór, members of the Dulick group have been creating environmental pieces to showcase at the exhibition. Each ephemeral art work is created using elements such as wood, flowers, grass and berries which are gathered on site and also through engaging creatively with the surrounding environment. The finished works will be photographed before being exhibited in glór. This year’s Embrace Arts and People with Disabilities exhibition and performance event will be held on May 9 at …

THE US army’s continuing use of Shannon Airport should be encouraged, according to Clare County Council. In the past, thousands of people have protested against the US transiting through the airport but, last Friday, members of the local authority passed a motion, proposed by Councillor Pat McMahon, that “In view of the substantial threats posed by Brexit and the uncertainty surrounding immigration and the pre-clearance facility at Shannon Airport, that this council reaffirms its support for American military transiting the airport”. Introducing the motion, the veteran Newmarket councillor said, “Since I was seven or eight-years-old, military aircraft have been going through Shannon and I don’t think anything has changed”. He described the US as “a friendly nation” and while he was in disagreement with those who have protested against the US military use of Shannon, he said he fully recognises their right to do so and that protests have been carried out in the right manner. Councillor McMahon’s motion mentioned …

Tidy Towns groups, development associations, community groups and residents associations accross the county have been invited to compete in the Clare in Bloom Competition 2017. The annual competition is a motivational mechanism for local groups to enhance the visual impact of their settlements by means of flower, tree and shrub planting. Cash prizes for the purpose of furthering projects in the local community will be awarded to category winners at Clare County Council’s awards ceremony in October. Sponsorship is this year being provided by ESB Moneypoint and Roche Ireland, with matching funding from the council. The award criteria for the competition include visual impact, range of planting, litter control and waste management, community involvement, energy initiatives and overall impression. The competition is based on three population categories. Category 1 caters for towns and villages with a population in excess of 700, Category 2 is for population centres of between 300 and 700 people and Category 3 features villages with a …