Month: December 2006

CLARE musician, Mike Hanrahan, has resigned his position as chairman of the board of the Irish Music Rights Organisation.

Hanrahan’s was one of two resignations from the Board after a disagreement with other board members. Quitting along with him is vice-chair and music executive, Barbara Galavan.

According to sources, their resignations follow a series of rows over what direction IMRO should take for the future.

Hanrahan has been IMRO’s chairman since 2000 and Galavan has been vice-chair for almost sixteen years.

It is understood that both had had a number of disagreements with other board members in recent months.

The organisation polices copyright and collects royalties from places which play music publicly.

The Clare musician is internationally recognised as a songwriter and a guitarist. He has released a number of solo albums and has played with bands including Tumbleweed and Stockton’s Wing.

As well as producing solo albums, he has been heavily involved in writing and producing for Dubliners singer, Ronnie Drew over the last ten years.

A CLARE man whose job it is to try to spot terrorists trying to board airplanes won his case for unfair dismissal after his employers claimed he missed a day’s work because he was hungover.

Andrew Brislane from Spanish Point was one of four airline security profilers who was drafted in to Shannon to help ICTS, a company which provides anti-terrorist security services for US airlines. The Employment Appeals Tribunal heard that ICTS is subject to security checks by inspectors from the US Government’s Transportation Security Administration.

In August 2004, the company was to undergo one such check but drafted Brislane and a number of others as three of their staff had resigned the previous month. The Tribunal heard that the drafted profilers had met in a hotel bar the night before. A supervisor of ICTS claimed that he had seen Brislane the next morning looking “rough as if he had a lot to drink.”

Brislane’s brother rang to say that he was sick. Four of the profilers failed to come to work and ICS said they had to put a contingency plan in place which resulted in long queues.

Brislane told the tribunal that he became ill and was told by his doctor that he was suffering from a virus and had had a mild heart attack.

The Tribunal ruled that ICTS had failed to carry out a proper investigation into the incident and had dismissed Brislane’s medical certificates.

MONEYPOINT, the country’s biggest producer of greenhouse gases, could be a candidate for technology which would allow the pollution to be buried.

The Clare power station is belching more poisons into the air than any other industrial source in the country, a recent report revealed.

But Carbon Capture – a technology which will be up and running in less than ten years – would enable the ESB to grab carbon dioxide and bury it before it can get into the atmosphere and do damage.

Figures published by the European Pollutant Emission Register show that Moneypoint tops the list for highest emissions of a number of environmentally damaging chemicals.

The coal-burning station near Kilrush is the greatest source of carbon dioxide emissions. Data from the Environmental Protection Agency shows that between 2003 and 2005 Moneypoint emitted 16.8m tons of carbon dioxide.

It also featured as the leading source of arsenic and its compounds along with five other chemical pollutants.

But as it produces 14 per cent of the country’s energy, closing the coal-burning station down is not an option.

Moneypoint is currently undergoing a €360 million makeover designed to reduce emissions, mainly of sulphuric and nitrous oxides, which will extend it’s life by 15 years.

A spokesman for the ESB said that it would “look at any new technology aimed at reducing emissions”, but added that the carbon capture technology is so new that there has been no chance as yet for energy bosses to study it.

Harry Audas, general manager of the International Energy Agency(IEA) greenhouse research and development programme, said that Carbon Capture is viable.

“It could be demonstrated technically viable within the next five to ten years but there’s still no commercial incentives, so it’s up to the politicians to get the commercial incentives in place.”

The IEA is the organisation which advises governments in developed nations on energy policy.

A breakthrough which would enable power generators to capture and bury carbon dioxide – the main greenhouse gas, widely blamed for heating the planet – would be a technological leap towards greener energy production which would be worth millions.

Also featuring in the list for certain chemical pollutant emissions were the neighbouring, the Tarbert County Limerick ESB plant and Aughinish Alumina.

CLARE householders could send 2011 tonnes of valuable recyclable material to landfill this Christmas, according to Clare County Council who are anxious to divert used packaging to its recycling centres at Lisdeen, Scariff, Ennis and Ballyduff – where everything from plastic and aluminium to cardboard and glass can be recycled.

According to council statistics, this year’s Christmas binge will see Clare householders consume

508,110 bottles of wine; 1.4 million cans and 406,488 bottles of beer; 745,228 cans of soft drinks and 101,622 boxes of sweets as well as 101,622 rolls of wrapping paper.

Over 711 tonnes of cardboard and paper from gift boxes, selection boxes and packaged foods will be disposed of in the county.

In total, it is estimated that each Clare household could produce an average of over 59 Kilos of used packaging waste that could be recycled this Christmas.

The Council is calling on all householders to reduce, reuse, recycle and compost this festive season.

The Lisdeen Recycling Centre will be closed from December 24 to 26 and from December 31 to January 1. Alternate opening hours are December 22 (10.15am to 4.15pm); December 23 (9am to 3pm); December 27 – 29 (10.15am to 4.15pm); December 30 (9am to 3pm) and January 2 (10.15am to 4.15pm).

The Scariff Reycling Centre will be closed from December 24 to 27 and from December 31 to January 1. Alternate opening hours are December 22 (2pm to 8pm); December 23 (12pm to 6pm); December 28 (2pm to 6pm); December 29 (2pm to 8pm); December 30 (12pm to 6pm) and January 2 (2pm to 6pm).

The Ennis Recycling Centre will be closed from December 23 to 27 and from December 31 to January 1. Alternate opening hours are December 22 (12pm to 4pm); December 28 (12pm to 8pm); December 29 (12pm to 6pm);

December 30 (9am to 5pm) and January 2 (10am to 5pm).

The central waste management facility at Ballyduff will be closed from December 24 to 26 and from December 31 to January 1. Alternate opening hours are December 23 (9am to 1pm for commercial customers and 9am to 3pm for public civic amenity site); December 27 to 29 (usual opening hours); December 30 (9am to 1pm for commercial customers and 9am to 3pm for public civic amenity site) and January 2 (usual opening hours).

THE ENNIS student who joined an elite team to represent Ireland at a science competition in Brazil has returned home covered in glory.

Victor Akujobi, a student of Ennis Community College, has brought home the country’s first silver medal from the Junior Science Olympiad.

Victor was picked on the strength of his Junior Certificate grades in Science and Maths to take part in the DCU/Damova Irish Junior Science Olympiad in DCU in November this year. He won a gold medal in this event entitling him to represent Ireland.

“It was a really exciting journey”, said Victor who added that he was “delighted and so are my family and people at school”.

Victor was on a team of six that travelled to Sao Paulo, Brazil for the competition. Fifty-three countries competed at the Olympiad, which ran from December 3 to 12.

The competition consisted of three three-hour exams spanning both the theoretical and experimental aspects of the four science disciplines, biology, chemistry, physics and maths.

On December 12, Victor was announced as one of the silver medalists, the first silver medal that Ireland has won at this event.

The win is a dream come true for the 15-year-old Nigerian, who came to Ireland in January this year to join his parents. “The buzz of pride and excitement in the school is a clear reflection of the immense magnitude of his achievement” one of Victor’s teachers told The Clare People .

After an appeal from a friend of the family through The Clare People , generous sponsors came on board to provide spending money for Victor’s trip.

Victor said that one of the best things about the Olympiad was “making so many new friends from so many different countries and cultures. My email in box is full”.

The Ennis student is hoping for a career that will “include something to do with maths, physics and computers. Those are my three main interests”.

Ennis Community College is no stranger to this type of international glory.

In 2001, one of their students Iris Choi won gold in the IBM/DCU Irish Physics Olympiad. She went on to represent Ireland in Antalya, Turkey in the International Physics Olympiad in June of that year.

Also on the International Wall of Fame for Ennis Community College is James Martin, who won the IBM/DCU Irish Schools Programming 1998 and went on to represent Ireland in Setubal, Portugal in September of that year at the International Olympiad in Informatics.

OVER 100 non-national workers at Shannon airport could hold the key in the upcoming union ballot to decide upon the airport’s restructuring programme.

The 100 or so temporary workers mainly from eastern Europe are expected to vote on the deal next month.

It is understood that the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) made a late change to the offer to unions at Shannon by including temporary workers in the €10,000 loyalty payment for those who remain.

At a series of meetings at the airport last week, workers were briefed on the deal and SIPTU is making no recommendation for acceptance or rejection.

It is understood that there are strong divisions among airport staff despite the apparently generous payouts and this puts the sizeable eastern European airport workforce in a pivotal position.

Shannon councillor Patricia McCarthy (Ind) said yesterday that she had certain reservations over the proposed deal, especially with the scale of job losses being talked about.

Workers at Shannon will consider the €35 million ‘survival plan’ that involves the voluntary redundancy of 200 workers over the Christmas period.

As part of the deal, the DAA is seeking cost cuts of €10 million per annum. Along with the voluntary redundancies, they are seeking increased flexibility in work practices and rosters across all divisions and is looking to exit completely from the airport’s existing catering operations through outsourcing.

As part of the redundancy deal, long-serving staff will receive lumpsum packages of over €100,000 and can also avail of pensions at 55.

There is also a €3 million fund set aside for the 300 staff who stay with the company with each worker receiving €10,000 for increased flexibility. No part of the airport security operation will be outsourced and the agreement also requires francishees and outsourcing companies to recognise unions.

At the start of October, the matter was referred to the Labour Relations Commission and a press black-out was imposed on the talks.

A spokeswoman for the SAA this week declined to comment on the fresh proposals but said the purpose was to make Shannon viable without its military traffic.

“The operational costs per passenger are three times that of Dublin airport and it is absolutely essential that any restructuring plan strips away €9 million to €10 million a year in savings,” she said.

KNOCK airport is set to handle transatlantic flights from next May, a move which could hit Shannon in the pocket.

Scottish airline, Globespan, will be operating six scheduled flights a week through the airport – now known as Ireland West – after finalising a deal with the US Department of Transport in Washington.

Other US airlines which fly into Shannon were made aware of the deal and of the fact that Globespan could be in breach of the Ireland-US bilateral agreements.

They were also made aware that the deadline for lodging objections was last week, but no US airline lodged any such objection.

Ireland West will become one of just three airports in the country to handle scheduled transatlantic flights. On three days flights will operate through the Mayo airport from Glasgow and fly on to Boston.

On the other three days flights originating in Liverpool will stop in Ireland West and then continue to New York.

The announcement comes as Transport Minister, Martin Cullen warned that a set-back in the bi-lateral agreement talks has not bought any extra time for the stopover than the original 18 month transition period originally promised.

“As far as I am concerned, the clock started ticking in October,” he said. Speaking in Brussels, the Minister described the stop-over arrangements as “archaic, outmoded and cosseted”. He warned that the arrangements are blocking at least 22 major new routes between Ireland and the US.

The deal which will allow flights between Ireland West and the US was brokered after the recent visit to Sligo of New York’s mayor, Michael Bloomberg. During his trip, he met the board of directors of Knock airport and subsequently set up meetings with the Department of Transport while adding his voice to the application to sanction the new routes.

Mayo-born New York radio host, Adrian Flannelly spearheaded the initiative.

Two tour operators will be involved in the operation, Crystal Travel from Boston and 1-2 Travel from Cork. When requirements are finalised, prices for the new routes will be decided next month.

Marketing Manager of the airport, Annette Kearney said that they are “very keen to put these routes in place because we know they will be of tremendous benefit not only to the people living in the northwest of Ireland but to their many friends and relatives living in the US. One out of every two people in the region have family and friends in the US.”

WHEN Elsevier Ireland was founded in Shannon in 1976, there were just two workers employed in the provision of subscription services from its tiny base on the Shannon Industrial Estate.

Thirty years later, there are 135 staff involved in the publication and support of medical, technical and scientific journals.

The Shannon plant is the second largest production unit in the Elsevier Group, producing 423 journals, generating 643,000 pages and operating a customer support department answering 4,000 queries a week.

The 30th anniversary of the company’s Shannon operation was marked at a function hosted by Shannon Development and attended by Minister for Labour Affairs, Tony Killeen and senior representatives from Elsevier Ireland.

Minister Killeen said Elsevier’s track record showed that companies can be globally competitive in a regional location such as the Shannon Free Zone.

Shannon Development chief executive Kevin Thompstone said the company’s growth mirrored the continuous reinvention which Shannon Development has had to undertake to maintain the Free Zone’s position as one of the leading business parks in Ireland.

Elsevier Ireland managing director Brendan Curtin said the Shannon operation has developed a very good reputation for innovation, contributing many ideas which were implemented globally.

While Elsevier has adopted the outsourcing model, the overall number of staff in Shannon continued to increase.

Elsevier Ireland Ltd is part of the Elsevier Group, a world-leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and services.

Working in partnership with the global science and health communities, Elsevier’s 7,000 employees in 71 offices worldwide publish more than 2,000 journals and 2,200 new books per year.

THE developer of a €50 million retail park on the outskirts of Clarecastle has warned that the retention of one-third of the site to protect a fen area would make the entire project unviable.

Earlier this year, Galway developer Stephen Harris unveiled a €50 million masterplan for a series of developments on a 48-acre site purchased last year from Clarecastle man JJ McCabe for over €18 million.

The plans lodged with Clare County Council by Mr Harris include a retail warehouse park, motor sales village, Travelodge hotel, drive-thru restaurants, storage and distribution at Skehanagh, Clarecastle.

Planning permission is only being sought for the retail park at this time in the south-east quadrant of the site.

However, council planners have expressed serious reservations over the retail impact of the development, its effect on traffic flows and the flooding regimes of the area.

In response, Mr Harris’s consultants stated that the revised proposal had not been arrived at lightly.

Turnover for the development will be €33 million in 2010, the year the project is expected to commence.

“It is clearly evident that the estimated increase in population within the catchment area is capable of supporting the proposed development,” the consultants state.

On the issue of protecting fen in the area, the consultants state, “If an area of fen was to be retained, the exclusion zone that would be required around the fen would be significantly larger than the area of fen itself.

“The retention of a significantly larger proportion of the site – potentially one third – in its strategic location would render the overall masterplan and potentially the development of the entire site unviable.”

Doubt also surrounds the translocation of protected species from the Ennis by-pass to the subject lands.

The consultants state, “The previous owner of the site was not informed of any proposed translocation. The current owner, who purchased the site in 2005, was not informed during the sale of the site and permission was not sought subsequently.”

A decision is expected on the application next year.

A DISTRICT court decision to cut back opening hours at a Lahinch nightclub has been upheld in the Circuit Court.

Last month, Judge Joseph Mangan granted an exemption at The Coast nightclub, until 1.30am, in the District Court. This is 30 minutes earlier than the normal exemption.

He made the ruling, after dealing with several Lahinch public order cases, in court. On that occasion, he said, “If a marked improvement is apparent some time in the future, the court may consider extending them to 2am. If there is no marked improvement, the court may consider cutting them back further.”

This decision was appealed to the Circuit Court last week by The Coast and Judge Carroll Moran upheld the decision made almost three weeks earlier.

While a spokesperson for The Coast was unavailable for comment when contacted by The Clare People yesterday, garda sources said they were happy with the court ruling. They are hopeful that this will help in the fight against crime in Lahinch, on weekend nights. Serious public order issues have been a concern to locals over the past few years.

Chairman of Lahinch Community Council, Donogh O’Loghlin – who opposed the appeal by The Coast in court – said he was pleased that the decision was upheld.

“I am delighted. It is not going to solve anything, but at least it puts the ball back in their – nightclub and publicans – court, to do something about it. Some publicans make more money out of the discos as young people are in the pubs before the discos open,” he said. “It won’t solve the public order issue but it should help it a little bit,” he said.

Mr O’Loghlin has urged nightclub proprietors and publicans to meet up, to discuss the public order issue in Lahinch.

He said the Community Council is also pledging to lobby politicians, in an effort to prevent capacity numbers at nightclubs being increased – capacity increased substantially last year, much to the concern of locals.

Mr O’Loghlin said there are insufficient gardaí available to patrol the streets of Lahinch and numbers allowed in nightclubs should not be allowed to increase.

“There are four gardaí to deal with 1,000 kids on the street. You can do nothing. There is a health and safety issue outside the discos as much as inside,” he said.