This article is from page 6 of the 2006-04-25 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 6 JPG
CLARE County Council has been given a cash injection of almost €1.5 million to improve access roads for farmers and turf cutters.
The cash boost is part of a €25 million funding package announced by Batt O’Keeffe, Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.
The figure for this year’s 2006 Local Improvements Scheme Grants to County Councils is a 100 per cent increase on last year’s allocation.
The money allows county councils to construct and improve non-public roads that provide access to parcels of land where there are at least two owners of fields who need access.
The funding can also be used if the council sees a need for access to cut turf, gather seaweed, or if the local authority believes that the road will be used by the public. Clare has been allocated €1,446,161, while Limerick has received €739,559 and Galway will benefit to the tune of €1,603,795.
The biggest beneficiary from the grants is Donegal County Council, which has been given €3,324,858.
Making the announcement, the minister said that the “2006 allocation of €25 million, which is double last year’s allocation of €12.5 million, is the highest ever level of State funding for the Local Improvements Scheme”.