SWIMMING has been banned indefinitely by Clare County Council at Kilkee beach following an instance of sewage entering the water from the pumping station this week. The latest ban is the second in six months at the same location and for the same reason and comes just days before the annual charity Christmas Day swim at the beach. On Wednesday afternoon, Clare County Council issued a prohibition notice on swimming at Kilkee beach “until further notice”, on the instruction of the HSE and in consultation with Irish Water. “The restriction has been introduced following the failure of a storm surge vessel at the Irish Water pump station in Kilkee. The situation will be kept under review,” the council statement said, while confirming that signage notifying the public of the prohibition on bathing would be erected. Irish Water also confirmed that a ‘do not swim’ notice has been issued following an emergency discharge of storm water, which contains elements of wastewater, …
Read More »Clare dreaming of a green Christmas
The people of Clare are being urged to play their part in reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill this Christmas by availing of one of Clare’s five recycling facilities. The Environment section of Clare County Council says people can bring a carload of recyclable waste to its recycling centres and transfer stations at Ballyduffbeg, Lisdeen, Shannon, Scarriff and Ennis for as little as €5. Councillor Bill Chambers, Cathaoirleach of Clare County Council, said, “I am delighted that the council’s environment section is issuing important advice to the public on how they can minimise the impact of their Christmas on the environment. “The people of Clare have always been very responsible when it comes to disposal of plastic, paper and glass materials built up over the Christmas period, and I am confident that they will respond similarly this year.” “With the Christmas holidays comes lots of extra packaging, particularly in the home,” explained Karen Foley, Environmental Awareness Officer, Clare …
Read More »Council owed €21m in commercial rates
CLARE County Council is owed close to €21 million in commercial rates, latest figures have confirmed. The figures also show that as well as the €20,995,000 outstanding for rates as of September 30, other monies owed to the council are €8.25m in development contributions, €1.65m in housing loans and rents, €629,000 in fire charges, €426,000 in LEO refundable aid and €1.5m for other charges. The details were released at this week’s meeting of the local authority on foot of a request by Councillor Michael Hillery, who described the amounts as “frightening”. “I know we are going through a recession and there are people availing of the council’s payment plans, but there are people out there who have money are not paying,” he said. He called on the Government to give councils the power to collect outstanding debts. “The council cannot carry on with debts like this, they have to be collected.” Niall Barrett, head of finance, commented, “In 2015, the …
Read More »Oscar Traynor winners honoured
THE Clare and District side that won this year’s Oscar Traynor was granted a civic reception by Clare County Council this week, which manager Donie Garrihy said was one of the highlights of his life. The civic reception took place on Monday evening and Garrihy said he was extremely grateful to the local authority. “We are so humbled as a group of players; we are so humbled as a league. It is spectacular to be here.” He said he was delighted that many figures from Clare soccer were in attendance, saying he was in “super company”. Garrihy added, “It’s an emotional time for me as manager. I see the squad here and they are dressed immaculately. They are dressed immaculately in respect of the people who are giving us this opportunity here in the county council chamber. I always said they were men; they are real men. I love every one of them to bits. The league has always supported …
Read More »Carron boil water notice lifted
Irish Water has lifted a boil water notice affecting approximately 20 premises in Carron in North Clare following remedial works to remove the threat of cryptosporidium. The lifting of the notice, on the advice of the Health Service Executive, follows completion of a number of remedial works at the treatment plant and the subsequent recording of satisfactory monitoring results. This notice was put in place by Irish Water and Clare County Council in May of this year due to the detection of low levels of cryptosporidium in the Carron water supply. The works carried out at the treatment plant involved the installation of an ultraviolet (UV) disinfection system on the supply. Customers can now resume normal use of the water supply for drinking, food preparation and brushing teeth. Aisling Buckley, Regional Information Specialist with Irish Water, commented: “Irish Water and Clare County Council acknowledge the patience, cooperation and assistance of the general public during the period of the Boil Water …
Read More »Council at the ready for Christmas
IT has been a busy start to the winter period at Clare County Council’s maintenance facilities, with 673.5 tonnes of rock salt and 147,000 litres of brine used to date in road treatment operations. The local authority’s fleet of seven salt and brine spreader trucks treated 673 kilometres of road on 14 separate days in recent weeks. Clare County Council says it has ample supplies of rock salt to treat the county’s regional and national roads during the remainder of winter. Two thousand tonnes of rock salt are currently in storage at the local authority’s depot facility at Beechpark, while an additional 1,000 tonnes are due to be delivered during the next week. Meanwhile, the council is reminding members of the public of the importance of being prepared during the winter season, which brings with it an increased threat of severe weather, including snow, ice, damaging winds and flooding. The call follows the launch this week by Government of the …
Read More »Deadline looming for Trump’s wall plan
WHILE much focus has been on whether US President Elect Donald Trump will progress with his pre-election promise to build a wall between Mexico and the US, he has until the end of 2016 to respond to Clare County Council’s demand for more information on his proposed Doonbeg wall. Following extensive flooding, significant repair work had to be carried out at the golf course in Doonbeg, which was re-opened last May. “The proposed rock berm is the subject of a planning application to Clare County Council by TIGL Enterprises Ireland Ltd. A request for further information has been issued to the applicant, which has until December 31 to reply. In the meantime, Clare County Council is not in a position to make any comment on the proposed development while the application process is ongoing,” the local authority said on Wednesday. On a visit to Doonbeg last May, to mark the re-opening of the course, Donald Trump’s son, Eric, told The …
Read More »Irish Water to bill business sector
Irish Water will this week begin the process to take in charge the administration of over 6,600 business customer accounts in County Clare. The change will see responsibility for account administration for existing business customers in Clare move to Irish Water from Clare County Council. Charges for business customers, credit terms and the frequency of billing will remain unchanged while this transition is taking place. Business customers in Clare will now have a single point of customer contact for all queries in relation to water supply, wastewater treatment and business account management. Irish Water will contact all 6,600 business customers and other affected groups directly, once the transition takes place. Bills will be issued from Irish Water directly, as they fall due, from December onwards. Irish Water recently completed a €4.6 million water mains rehabilitation project in Ennis, which has led to significant improvements in network performance, security of supply and efficiency for businesses and homes in the area. In …
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