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A FREE alternative heating event organised by local Renewable Energy Consultants Ensoleir will be held on March 10 at Temple Gate Hotel. It is open to the public from 5pm with a seminar-style session for biomass installers beforehand.

The event will be of interest to anyone who wants to reduce their heating bills with the use of a renewable resource like wood and will inform about alternative heating solutions while also launching a new good value multifuel boiler.

Corofin-based company Ensoleir (short for Energy Solutions Ireland), who have recently been a major contributor to the first installation of a Miscanthus-fuelled boiler in Ireland, are now also providing domestic alternative heating solutions fuelled by wood and other solid fuels. In partnership with several wood energy suppliers and supported by Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland (SEAI) and Limerick Clare Energy Agency (LCEA), Ensoleir are offering a free-of-charge informative event on March 10 at the Temple Gate Hotel in Ennis.

“The alternative heating market has been identified as one of rapid growth over the coming years. The Limerick Clare Energy Agency is delighted to support the Getting Renewables Right event organised by local company Ensoleir and partners,” said Pat Stephens, Manager of Limerick Clare Energy Agency.

He welcomed the collaboration between local businesses by saying, “It is great to see local small business in the alternative heating sector coming together and pooling their expertise and resources to make themselves available to the public for questions and advice.”

The afternoon will start with a seminar for biomass installers at 2pm supported by speakers from the Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland (SEAI) and Limerick Clare Energy Agency (LCEA). Throughout the day there will be live demonstrations of a new boiler series in a tailored van that includes the complete heating system.

“In order to provide a good quality product to our customers we believe that we need to go beyond advising them about the benefits of our highquality boilers. We want to provide them with the necessary network to make sure that the installation and maintenance of the boiler as well as the delivery of wood pellets and the pellet quality and availablility are secured from the start,” said Fritz Mohn, founder and CEO of Ensoleir.

COUNCILLORS in Ennis have delayed making a decision on new casual trading byelaws after opposition emerged to a proposal to tow away cars parked in trading bays in the market area of the town.

Under the draft byelaws, it had been proposed to introduce a tow away system for the removal of vehicles in trading bays on casual trading days.

However when the matter was raised at yesterday’s monthly meeting of Ennis Town Council, councillors warned that motorists would be unfairly penalised if the system was introduced.

Describing it as a “very extreme proposal”, Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) said the system to tow away cars could discourage people from coming to Ennis.

Cllr Mary Howard (FG) said the council would be taking a “retrograde step” if it started to tow away cars, particularly in cases where pub-goers are choosing to leave their cars in the town centre overnight.

Cllr Peter Considine (FF) said he had “serious concerns” over the proposal and added that clear and visible signage would be essential if the amendment to the byelaws was enacted.

Mayor of Ennis Cllr Brennan (Ind) said that he was against towing with Cllr Flynn urging the council not to take a “sledgehammer approach” to enforcing byelaws.

Town clerk Eddie Power defended the proposal saying that the system would be used “sparingly”.

He said towing would be necessary to ensure that trading bays are available to traders on trading days, particularly when traders pay an annual license fee.

“Traders need reassurance that they can trade on the day and that bays will be available to them,” he added.

Mr Power, who also confirmed that towing would be carried out by a private company, said that if the council was serious about redevel- oping the market then a “regime had to be put in place that allows trading to take place”.

Town Manager Ger Dollard said that he understood concerns about the proposal but that cars would only be towed away as a “last resort”.

Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) supported the towing policy, saying it was necessary to effectively ensure trading in the market.

Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind) strongly criticised the proposal, saying it sent out all the wrong signals about Ennis.

Councillors agreed to defer the matter until next month’s meeting.

Councillors also rejected a proposal to restrict the sale of Christ- mas trees to the Island car park in Cloughleigh.

The new byelaws provide for a new system of payment of the annual license fee and the change in orientation of the market’s 53 stalls. A special event license and fee will also be introduced.

Among the other main amendments proposed for the draft byelaws are setting trading hours from 7am to 7pm, setting the maximum height of stalls to 2.4 metres, prohibiting the sale of alcohol, the removal of three casual trading bays in Summerhill and the restriction of trading at market place car park (bays 43 to 53 inclusive) to 2pm on Saturdays.

AT LEAST one major German tour operator has already signed up to bring a group of eco-tourists to north Clare following the launch of the Burren Eco-tourism Network last week.

The network, which was officially launched by celebrity chef Darina Allen last Thursday, aims to get the tourist community in north Clare working together to offer a more sustainable tourist product to visitors.

The Burren region is now just the second location in Ireland to be granted eco-tourism status by Ecotourism Ireland. Eco-tourism works by offering tourists a more personal and sustainable experience of a location, encouraging smaller scale tours to take more time in an area and in this way gives more benefit to the local economy while reducing any damage to the local environment.

“I’ve already had an enquiry from one major tourist operator in Germany who was looking to organise an eight-day tour around Ireland and to stay in four or five locations. After explaining the concept of eco-tourism and what we had to offer this operator was happy to spend that eightday tour around just two eco-tourism sites in Ireland,” said Edel Hayes of the Burren Connect Project.

“That means that people stay in the area for longer, they have a better experience and the contribute more to the local economy and the local tourist sector while they are here.”

At least one other location in Clare is currently working towards ecotourism status and hopes are high that the county could become the eco-tourism capital of Ireland.

“The people in the network have benefited greatly from getting to know each other and exchanging ideas about how each of them runs their operation but they have also benefited from the knowledge that they have learned from the process of gaining their eco-tourism certificates,” continued Edel.

“We already know of another network who are currently coming together in Clare and are hoping to follow in out footsteps and be accredited by Eco-tourism Ireland. So we are hoping that other networks can come together in Clare and indeed across Ireland and work together.”

More than 20 north Clare businesses have been awarded certificates from Eco-tourism Ireland. The Burren Eco-tourism Network has received support from Clare County Council, Clare Local Development Company, Shannon Development and Fáilte Ireland over the past two years.

SHANNON Airport is better off financially by having lower passenger numbers, Dublin Airport Authority chief David Dilger has claimed in rejecting out of hand Ryanair’s proposal to boost passenger numbers at the ailing airport by one million over the next five years.

He made comments when claiming that Ryanair chief Michael O’Leary wanted “hello money” in return for a commitment to boost its services in Shannon back to pre-2009 levels when it operated 53 routes from the airport.

“There isn’t a business in the country that can afford to pay its customers to deal with it,” said David Dilger in rejecting the Ryanair one million offer in return for a ‘growth incentive scheme’ that would see the DAA pay Ryanair € 4.20 for every new passnenger brought through the airport.

“All of us are in business to earn a reasonable profit. I’m afraid Michael’s purported generosity to Shannon is not really sustainable and we are certainly not going to pay him to bring passengers in.

“The fact is the financial situation of Shannon is much better today than it was with a far bigger number of passengers,” said Mr Dilger.

In reference to a previous deal between the DAA and Ryanair at Shannon, Mr Dilger claimed “that deal was never completed by Ryanair.

“The promises that Ryanair made were not delivered to this community and Ryanair paid € 3.7m to the DAA in the High Court in order to reflect their failure to complete the terms of that deal.

“Interestingly, the first part of that deal they want to do now is they want the € 3.7m that was won in the High Court back. So as well as being paid to deliver passengers they want ‘hello money’ as well.”

Mr Dilger’s comments came in the wake of Mr O’Leary’s move to gate-crash the Shannon Chamber of Commerce event in Bunratty Castle Hotel last Wednesday, prior to holding his own press conference in the Clarion Hotel in Limerick later that afternoon.

“ I do not think Shannon will return a profit this year,” said Mr Dilger, “but it is well on the way to becoming sustainable. It’s very important to us that we break even by 2012. That’s the plan and that’s what we will do,” he added.

RESIDENTS in Shannon will voice their concerns over issues in their locality at a meeting of the local town council tonight (Tuesday).

People living in the Cúl na Gréine housing estate in the Tullyvarraga area of the town feel they are being ignored and are concerned that contentious issues are not being taken seriously.

The 107-unit estate was built six years ago and issues such as antisocial behaviour have prevailed, for which locals urgently require action.

A concerned residents group has been set up, with the aim of ensuring their voices are heard by the local authorities.

Three representatives of the group will attend tonight’s meeting and are hopeful that their issues will be taken on board by the town council members. “They are coming along in solidarity of what we are doing,” said Independent Councillor Gerry Flynn, who is involved in the organisation.

“There are big issues. They have made several attempts to start a residents association but they got little or no help from Clare County Council,” said Cllr Flynn.

“There are people bringing up their children there and there are also retired people living there. They are fantastic people. All they want to do is to be able to enjoy their homes in peace,” he added.

He said that some people living in the area are the subject of threats and intimidation, while anti-social behaviour is problematic.

“There is a Neighbourhood Watch scheme. However, it is difficult to get resources even to buy a few signs. They are being forgotten about. I want to give them a voice,” he added.

Cllr Flynn is calling on the council to provide a detailed report on the estate management issues in Cúl na Gréine.