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A CLARE third-level student will be used by the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) to contest a judicial review against changes made to the way in which third-level grants are calculated.

USI president Gary Redmond confirmed to The Clare People yesterday that the case of a north Clare student, Medb Hensey, will be used to challenge new Department of Education legislation which increases the distance from a university that a student can be considered “adjacent”.

Under the new rules, which come into effect this September, Medb’s grant will be significantly cut because, even though she lives outside Ballyvaughan, she is considered to live beside NUI, Galway. The case will appear in the high court on October 7.

“Medb is being used as part of this test case. We know this won’t help Medb or other students this year but it might help her, or other students in the same position, down the line.

“We did try to impress on the judge how important the timing of the case was, with students going back to college,” said Gary Redmond, President of the Union of the Student in Ireland.

“This has placed a lot of students in severe financial difficulty and I know that many students, especially from rural areas, may have difficulty going back to college.

“The rationale behind this is that public transport has improved but if you look at a situation like Medb’s, there is no way that she can get to college using public transport each day.”

Medb is planning to take up a year’s study abroad this September and, according to her mother Antoinette, they have managed to save enough money for Medb to study abroad this September.

“USI sent an engineer out to measure the distance and we are 39km from Galway by the shortest direct route,” she said.

“This won’t be of any benefit to Medb this year but we are hopeful that USI may win this case; we will have to wait and see.

“She is going to Malta anyway. We have both been working hard to ensure that we have enough to get her there. We were both determined that that would happen.”

A CLARE man says he is confident of winning a place in the Guinness Book of World Records next month when he attempts to swim 10km underwater in under eight hours.

Barefield diver Christopher Healy has been given the official go-ahead from the Guinness Book of World Records to go ahead with the dive on September 18 next. Because this will be a new category for the records, Christopher, who owns the Atlantic Diving School, has been set a target of eight hours to complete the 10km course in order to make the book.

“I am going to go 10 kilometres completely underwater. We are starting off at Crab Island in Doolin and we have a route mapped out which will take us about a quarter of a mile out into the Atlantic, then north up the coast and back again to Crab Island.

“We will be setting a new category for the Guinness Book of World Records. They have set us the challenge of finishing the 10k dive in under eight hours to make the record but I am confident that we can complete it in under seven.

“We are looking to smash the target that they have set and make it very hard for anyone who might want to come after us and want to break this record. We are going to push it all the way and make sure that if anyone wants to come and better us, they will have to earn it.”

The attempt will see Christopher being helped by three safety boats, as well as a safety snorkler and two guide snorklers.

“The guide snorklers will go ahead of me and drag a small lead weight along the bottom of the sea floor that is the mark that I will follow. It is very hard to tell directions under water,” continued Christopher.

“The idea is that we will have two guide snorklers and two safety snorklers who will take the journey in shifts. The safety snorkler will be my son and my wife who will both swim 5km each underwater.”

Sponsorship cards are available for anyone who wants to support Christopher’s record attempt, with all money raised going to the Share A Dream Foundation. To donate money, visit www.mycharity.ie/event/ 10k_world_record_attempt.

THE Ennis Business Forum is doing its bit to try and transform the county capital into Ireland’s friendliest town. Now comes another initiative being pioneered by three-time former Mayor of Ennis, Cllr Frankie Neylon, to create buzz in the town for one day, in the hope that it can stimulate renewed interest and activity in the retail sector.

It’s being labelled as Ennis’ ‘Super Tuesday’ and it takes place on September 6 next – an idea that Cllr Neylon says can be “whatever businesses in the town want it to be to try and help their business”.

The idea for staging a once-off event where businesses can run special promotions, whether individually or in groups, was floated by Cllr Neylon earlier this month within the Ennis Town Council. Since then, thanks to a local marketing drive through the circulation of handouts and questionares among all the businesses in town, sufficient interest has prompted the designation of the first Tuesday of September as the county capital’s ‘Super Tuesday’.

“September 6 is around the time that Muhammad Ali came to Ennis,” says Cllr Neylon. “We can’t use his name for anything and a few people said to me that we should come up with a festival. It was difficult enough to get people to commit to anything.

“I mentioned Super Tuesday to a few people and they thought it was a good idea, so I ran with it a couple of weeks ago. The idea for the day is that instead of making a profit for the day that they might make a customer. It’s to have a special day. They can do whatever they want. It’s left totally to themselves to do what they want.

“We’re inviting all the traders in the town to take part. We want them to join us to have one good day of shopping in Ennis. We want each trader to have their own Super Tuesday – they can do whatever kind of promotion they want with their business.

“I can say that it has proven to be a success so far, and that’s even a good bit ahead of the event. Up to 30 of the businesses around town have been on to me already and they are taking part. We circulated a handout to all businesses. We collected those last week and now we’re getting ready for the day,” he adds.

A PROGRAMME that is geared towards helping youths to develop their confidence and life skills has mushroomed in Clare this year. The Baha’iinspired Junior Youth Empowerment programme has set up nine branches across the county as up to 80 young people in Clare and Limerick are learning through the scheme.

Volunteers work with youths in the 11 to 15 age bracket. They navigate and nurture them through their daily activities. The aim is that their work with the youths will help them to build confidence and progress in life.

It initially became popular in Shannon after two young men – Mark Barry and Aron Foley – decided to take time out of their education last year to focus on working on the programme. They set up two groups in Shannon and other branches have since been set up in Ennis, Kilrush, Killaloe and Parteen.

Clare Jamal O’Brien, who lives in Ennis, works with the Junior Youth programme on a full-time basis and is thrilled to see that numbers of young people involved have increased rapidly. Clare is a member of the Baha’i community but stresses that the programme is open to all religions.

“You see the commitment of individuals who care about the progress of their communities. These young people are key to ensuring the betterment of their communities. People sincerely have a desire to contribute to their society but many people don’t know how to do that,” she said.

“This is a spiritual empowerment programme. Most of the people who used to run these programmes were of the Baha’i community but now they are from a multitude of religious backgrounds and, in some cases, no religious backgrounds,” said Clare.

The various groups all operate on an individual basis. Some meet regularly, while others hold infrequent meetings. “The groups are varied. One group in Shannon meets almost every single day. Other groups would meet at least once a week. They decide how they would meet.

“They start at the age of 11 or 12 and complete it at 15. After that they can continue on and train to serve the community or train some of their friends in Junior Youth. Parents can come and contribute. The role parents play is vital,” Clare said.

Clare believes that the increase in interest in Clare is down to the fact that “people have been interested and committed to learning. It is important that young people have spiritual relationships with each other regardless of their religious backgrounds”.

The aim is to further increase the numbers involved with Junior Youth. “Our goal is to see 200 members in Clare and Limerick in the next few months,” said Clare.

Anyone wishing to get involved in Junior Youth should phone 087 2047162.

PROMOTING a greater understanding of Clare’s rich heritage for both local and visitor alike has emerged as a major tenet of Clare County Council environmental policy from now until 2017.

This commitment going forward, in tandem with conserving and enhanc ing the county natural environment, is contained in the second Clare Heritage Plan (2011-2017) that has been put together over the last year.

The launch of the plan in the Vandeleur Walled Garden on Monday was followed by visit to Scattery Islands – considered to be one of jewels in Clare’s heritage crown – by some of the key partners in formulation of the ambitious six-year plan.

The publication of the heritage bluerprint marks the culmination of a year’s work by the County Clare Heritage Forum and brings together the interests and agendas of the 23 forum members and 64 submissions made by the public.

“There were 66 partners in the development of this plan,” revealed Heritage Officer, Conjella McGuire, “all of whom have generously committed their time, energy and expertise.

“As a result of this, the Heritage Plan brings together a wide range of backgrounds and interests.”

Launching the plan, the Mayor of Clare, Cllr Pat Hayes said “our heritage is about people, place, culture, nature and the opportunities that it can offer in the future.

“Our heritage is one of our greatest strengths in the county and I intend to lead the implementation of this ambitious plan for the benefit of the county,” added Mayor Hayes, who has been chairman of the council Heritage Forum since 2006.

“The plan has three overall aims which are supported by 14 objectives and in total contains 77 actions. It is an ambitious plan and seeks to complement and build on the achievements of the previous Heritage Plan 2003-2007,” said Ms McGuire.

“Community groups have fostered and enhanced their local heritage and a wide variety of community heritage initiatives are underway in the county at present, many of which are showcased throughout the county this week during Heritage Week,” said Cllr Oliver Garry, chairman of the West Clare area group of county councilors.

“Community groups and individuals require funding and technical advice in order to implement best practice,” he added.

CAR sales dropped in Clare during the summer months, but hopes are high that they will recover for the remaining four months of the year.

Overall, new car sales across the county increased by 5.2 per cent since the start of the year. Up to last Friday, there were 1,984 new cars registered in County Clare, compared with 1,886 during the same period last year.

The figures from www.motorcheck. ie show that while car sales increased in Clare in May and June, they decreased in July and August. The increase in May was 2.5 per cent; in June – when car sales surged prior to the end of the popular scrappage scheme – the increase was a massive 73.9 per cent; the decrease in July was 43.5 per cent, while the drop so far in August is along the lines of 90 per cent. There were 136 new cars sold during the first 19 days of August of last year, compared to just 14 this year.

The number of cars purchased in the ‘all cars’ category – which includes new and used cars – has increased by 3.3 per cent so far this year. However, there was a reduction of 77.1 per cent in this category so far this month. There was a decrease of 16.1 per cent in July; an increase of 62.1 per cent in June and an increase of one per cent in May.

In Clare, the Ford Focus is the most popular choice of car, followed by the Nissan Qashqai, the Ford Fiesta, the Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Corolla, Nissan Juke, Toyota Avensis and Volkswagen Passat.

Silver is the most popular colour of car, followed by black, grey, blue and red, in Clare.

Nationally, the number of cars sold in July decreased by 35 per cent, compared with July 2010. However, the figure for July 2010 included cars in the scrappage scheme, which came to an end in June of this year.

THE Kinvara Farmers market will continue trading in 2011, even if difficulties in obtaining a license to trade in the town’s square cannot be overcome. The future of the market had looked in jeopardy earlier this month due to ongoing delays in completing legislation to clarify the standing of markets hosted on public areas.

The market, which has proved a huge success since it was first set up in 2009, has up until now traded on private property at Johnson’s Garden but this area will be unavailable to traders next year. The market had originally been designed to trade in the Square in Kinvara but delays in drafting market legislation had forced them to take up residence in Johnson’s Garden.

With this legislation still some way off, the future of the market for 2011 had seemed in doubt. However, an innovative new approach by the market has secured the market’s future whether the market legislation is drafted in time or not. Last week, the Kinvara Farmers Market successfully secured a road closure license which allowed them to trade at the Square in Kinvara without the need for the farmers market license. A meeting of traders will now take place next month, where the various options available to the group will be outlined.

“I think we proved that a market can work well in the Square in Kinvara. Despite difficulties with the weather, we got great feedback from customers” said Antoinette Hensey of the Kinvara Farmers Market. “What we can do next year is apply for a road closure for every Friday morning during our trading season and that will allow us to trade each week. This would, we think, cost less that a license and we are not at present able to get a license so there is a solution to our problem. The market will be back next year, one way or the other.

“This is a very unusual route that we have taken and we think that it could be used by other markets who are in difficulty with the licensing regulations. There are lot of conditions to be met but, once you have achieved this, it is relatively straightforward.

“We need to have a stall-holders meeting to see what we will do for next year. There are many who believe that business will be better in the Square but there are other who have an emotional attachment to the space in Johnson’s – which might still be available to us for next year.”

Anyone who wishes to find out more about getting a road closure licence can contact Antoinette Hensey on 065 7078042.

THE construction of a new € 200 million wind farm in Mount Callan will stem emigration from West Clare – not just by the jobs it creates but also by showing the young local population that anything is possible.

That is the opinion of local farmer and member of West Clare Renewable Energy John Talty, who believes that the wind farm will keep West Clare communities alive.

“This will keep the next generation here. It will keep the young people here in West Clare not just by the employment that it generates but also because this will show people that anything is possible,” he said.

“What this was about right from the very beginning was generating employment in our community, in West Clare. Anyone who knows this area know that this is an area that is crying out for local employment. People are taking the Hand road down to Ennis and Shannon every day for jobs and this can now open a real opportunity for people in West Clare.

“It is not just about the construction and operation of a wind farm this will have major spin-offs for the whole region. Part of the plan is to build proper walking trails and cycle ways into the design of the windfarm and we believe that this project will become a big draw for tourists coming into the area.”

The wind farm, which has been a local project for more than 16 years, began to take shape properly in 2006 when West Clare Renewable Energy was first established. It was given the green light by An Bord Pleanála yesterday who actually increased the number of turbines allowed on the wind farm to 29, from the 28 which Clare County Council granted permission for earlier this year.

“We’re delighted today. This has come about after a lot of hard work and struggle by a lot of people and we are all really over the moon with the decision,” continued John.

“What we really want to do now is to thank all of the landowners and the wider community for the support that they have given throughout this process which has been brilliant – people like the Traders Association in Miltown Malbay who have been so supportive of this project from the very beginning.

John also paid special to the late Robert Tottenham, one of the groundbreaking thinkers in forestry in Ireland and the person who first conceived of bringing wind energy to Mount Callan almost 20 years ago.

THE people of Clare will be given the opportunity to invest in the largest renewable energy project ever undertaken in Ireland through a local share issue being offered by the West Clare Renewable Energy (WCRE).

The co-op style company, which is made up of more than 30 local landowners, was yesterday granted planning permission to build a € 200 million wind farm in Mount Callan. According to company spokesperson Padraig Howard, the company has already been contacted by a number of international investment companies looking to bankroll the project but WCRE have decided to fund construction locally, as much as possible, by issuing a “local share” which would allow the people of West Clare to buy a stake in the company.

“We are very strongly of the opinion that we do not want to sell on the project to outside investors. We started this so that we could create jobs and as a resource for the wider community in west Clare,” he said.

“There will be debt on the project and we will be borrowing from investment funds and banks to get this off the ground but there will also be the chance for people to invest. We are hoping to put out a share offer for the local community and the wider community in west Clare that can buy into the project if they wish. If that happens then that will be absolutely fantastic, because that means that the return from the project will be shared among the wider community in west Clare.”

Construction work on the giant wind farm cannot begin until a connection to the national grid can be secured – something which could hold up the wind farm for up to five years.

“The next step is securing an offer of a grid connection from Airgrid and the Commission for Energy Regulation. That is a very slow and cumbersome process at the moment and we will have to wait for a number of years,” continued Padraig.

“The new government has promised to reform this process and speed it up – especially for projects who have a certain scale, have strong wind resources and are close to an existing grid connection – we tick all three of those boxes. So we are hopeful that we can get over the grid connection difficulty as quickly as possible.

“Without a firm grid connection offer we can only guess when we can start the process. But today is still a day to savour – we now know that this will go ahead sooner than later. We are anxious that this go ahead ASAP but we have been patient in the planning of this and we will continue to be patient.”

Mr Howard also thanked all the people of west Clare who had backed the project and also invited anyone who might have been against the planning permission being granted to further engagement on the progress of the wind farm.

A SECOND major climbing accident of the summer took place in North Clare this Saturday when a man had to be airlifted to safety after falling more than five metres at the Ailladee area, just north of Doolin.

The man, who is understood to be a Czech national living in Ireland, was “free climbing” with three others on Saturday evening when the accident took place.

Free climbing mean climbing without the use of ropes and is considered to be more dangerous than abseiling using ropes.

A 41-year-old man was airlifted to hospital after his climbing equipment apparently failed and he fell five metres from a cliff face, crushing several vertebrae in his back. The man was airlifted to by Rescue 115 to the University College Hospital in Galway.

Meanwhile, a passenger ferry ran aground in low tide in Doolin last week – forcing it’s crew and captain to remain on board for several hours until the tide changed again.

The Rose of Aran, which is operated by Aran Doolin Ferries, was arriving in Doolin to collect passengers before travelling to the Aran Islands when the incident took place.

The Doolin unit of the Irish Coast Guard assessed the vessel and concluded that it was neither in danger of capsizing or a pollution risk.

“The tides were very low last week and the ship ran aground. It is something that could happen any time at Doolin except for the skill of the skippers who are navigating in that shallow area,” said Matty Shannon of the Doolin Unit of the Irish Coastguard.

“The boat didn’t list and there was no immediate danger. This is the sort of thing that wouldn’t happen if there was a new pier in Doolin.”