Tag Archives: scariff

GREATER efforts must be made to keep key local link roads passable during the current winter lockdown, according the Cathaoirleach of the Killaloe Municipal District. Councillor Pat Hayes made his remarks at this week’s meeting of the district committee noting that during the recent lengthy spell of sub-zero temperatures, there were particular issues around Flagmount and between Feakle and Scariff. In a motion calling for a review of the Winter Gritting Plan, the Fianna Fáil member noted that the Feakle-Scariff road and the Gort-Tulla road are among some key routes currently excluded from the plan. “These roads need to be included as a matter of urgency for the safety of motorists,” he said. “Now that people have to stay within 5km of their homes, it’s particularly important that they can safely access local services. If you take O’Meara’s in Flagmount, people have to be able to get there safety for essential food and supplies. I’m calling on the council to …

WITH the return of Level 5 restrictions, communities across East Clare are responding with the kindness and solidarity that they have shown throughout the last nine months of 2020. The East Clare Community Response group covers Flagmount, Killanena, Feakle, Scariff, Tuamgraney, Ogonnelloe, Bodyke, Mountshannon and Whitegate, and can be contacted on 085-8659889. Volunteers will respond to calls to that number, as well as texts or WhatsApp messages, and will support anyone who is elderly, vulnerable, or who has chosen to self-isolate. The response group will deploy Garda-vetted local volunteers in the relevant community area to ensure people have access to medicines and general supplies. Response group members work within strict medical protocols and in compliance with all public health guidelines. All requests for support are confidential and information is never held or shared. Anyone who wishes to volunteer is advised to contact their local community group.

A SCARIFF-born scientist has taken a prestigious funding award, for the second time, and has described the funding grant as “a dream come true”. Dr Pauline Scanlan has been awarded a prestigious Royal Society-Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) University Research Fellowship, which recognises her outstanding early career achievements, competing alongside the best for her research on microbial activity in the human gut. Dr Scanlan, who went to Scariff National School and then Scarriff Community College, is a role model and ambassador for careers in STEM.  She currently participates in many educational and public engagement activities such as hosting transition year and other students in their labs, primary school visits (which happened virtually in 2020). Her public activities involve her giving career talks, acting as mentors, providing guidance to students for BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition (BTYSE) projects but also through her day-to-day interactions with students, and other trainee researchers. She is a firm believer in the adage, ‘If you can’t …

COMMUNITIES across Ireland are being encouraged to grow and save their own seed together in a major new programme being launched by Scariff-based, Irish Seed Savers Association. The Community Seed Guardians Programme is a training and mentoring programme for communities across the country to grow and save their own food seed. The programme was developed with funding received through Rethink Ireland’s Innovate Together programme, which was established in response to Covid-19 to build resilience in communities. With growing awareness of climate change and fear over the limitations in the food supply chain brought into focus by the pandemic, the Guardian Programme will work with established community gardening groups to reduce Ireland’s reliance on imported food and food seed. Training community growing groups to grow and save their own food seed will increase access to seed availability and create greater community engagement with the full food supply from seed to plate. “We are excited to be given this support by Rethink …

PROGRESS with a greenway project for South and East Clare has prompted optimism that the development will have a transformative effect on tourism in the region, in the near future. Deputy Michael McNamara has learned that Waterways Ireland, who secured €140,000 last July, is to go to tender for a feasibility study and preliminary design works next week. Contractors for the study and design on the 41km route, which will start from the existing greenway to the University of Limerick (UL), crossing the River Shannon over the Black Bridge and following the old Errina Canal to O’Brien’s Bridge and onwards to Scariff, are expected to be appointed before Christmas. “Both reports should be complete by the end of the first quarter of 2021,” the Independent TD told The Champion. “Because so much of the land along the route is in the ownership of the ESB, I would hope that issues that are affecting the development of greenways in Kerry and …

LOCAL geography has come to life for second years at Scariff Community College, where students are making a submission to a review of the County Development Plan. Under the guidance of teacher Darina Sheridan and with support from Carmel Brislane, a planner with the council, the students are making their voices heard on the future of the school’s catchment area of Scariff, Mountshannon and Whitegate. Geography teacher Darina sees the call for submissions to the plan, which will cover 2022-2028, as an opportunity for some real-world learning. “I had looked that the plan previously with a Transition Year (TY) group and realised that there was potential here for the students to look at their own areas and to get to know then and what kind of amenities they would like to see,” she explained. Working with Clare County Council, Darina began to develop practical exercises built around the submission. “We have had Zoom calls with Carmel, which were great,” she …

WEAK broadband infrastructural across Clare has been condemned by the county chairperson of the IFA, after online mart trading collapsed recently due to pressure on the system. Level 5 restrictions have severely curtailed the operation of marts across the country with all transactions now taking place virtually. Tom Lane of Parteen said that the inadequate state of broadband infrastructure in the county had been exposed and that speeding up initiatives like the National Broadband Plan was now an urgent matter. A technical glitch, outside of the control of Clare Marts, who use an external supplier for their streaming and online sales, meant that trading was interrupted for a time last Saturday week. “There was a major problem nationwide,” Michael McNamara, the manger explained. “One of the software providers that offer livestreaming, their server crashed or was unable to handle the volume of business. Thankfully, that got resolved. It was out for two to two-and-a-half hours, but got up and running …

MARTS will continue to operate under Level 5 restrictions, but all sales will move online and access to the premises in Ennis, Kilfenora, Scariff and Kilrush will be strictly controlled. Sellers are asked to book a time to ‘drop and go’. Similarly, buyers must pre-book a viewing time when they will be able to look at animals in the mart yard. They must then leave the mart and make their bids remotely either online or through an app. “It is going to be tough, there’s no doubt about that, but we’re determined to keep the service to farmers going,” said General Manager of Clare Marts, Martin McNamara. “We’ve already being conducting a lot of business online and Level 5 means our sales will now move entirely online. Sellers need to book with us in advance so that they can drop their animals off at the mart and go. Buyers, who might be working on behalf of a number of customers, …