Category: News

PRELIMINARY work has started on a new local area plan for Shannon town and surrounding areas.

This emerged at a meeting of Shannon Town Council last week, after Labour Councillor Greg Duff asked for the town council to call on the county council to exclude from any plans to revoke sections of the South Clare Local Area Plan areas that have been identified as amenity, parkland or wetland.

He asked that the council consult with local residents, Dúchas na Sionna and other interested groups to maintain and develop these sites.

In a response from the council, he was told that preliminary work has commenced on a new local area plan for Shannon town and environs.

“The plan-making process will involve a wide ranging review of all its constituent parts including the town area as it presently exists in the South Clare Local Area Plan 2009-2015. New planning and environmental legislation requires such a review,” stated the council’s response.

It added that there are “no definite proposals at this time in respect of changing zoning status on said lands. It is proposed to consult with the elected members and public shortly on this and other matters”.

Cllr Duff told the meeting he would like to see an attitude whereby green areas are saved and not be replaced by “commercial or retail development”.

He said that 47 submissions have been made, one of which he was involved in with heritage group Dúchas na Sionna.

A SITE off the coast of north Clare has been identified by the WestWave wave energy company as a likely site for Ireland’s first ever commercial wave energy field.

The north Clare site is one of four locations identified by WestWave which is an alternative energy company owned by ESB International – for the development of the revolutionary offshore energy resource, along with two sites in Mayo and one in Galway.

It is as yet unclear which site will be used for the first WestWave energy field but it is likely that if the first site is deemed a success, the production will spread to the other three sites.

While the exact location of the proposed site in north Clare has not been confirmed, The Clare People understand that the site is located in the Ballyvaughan area.

According to ESB International Ocean Energy Project Manager, James Tedd, the target date for electricity generation to begin at the chosen site is 2015. If that target date is to be met, the planning process for the proposed development will have to begin next year, with construction to start in 2013 at the latest.

A number of government energy agencies, semi-state organisations and private companies have examined a number of locations off the Clare coast with a view to producing wave energy.

Wave energy can be produced in a number of different ways, meaning that some forms of generators may be more suitable to some locations rather than others. A number of Irish-based companies currently have working prototypes but no company is yet to produce a full-sized wave electricity generator for use in the field.

The ESB is committed to reducing its own carbon emissions by 50 per cent by 2030 and to be ‘net-zero’ in carbon emissions by 2050. According to Mr Tedd, the company hoped to derive at least one-third of its electricity generation from renewable sources by 2020 – and ocean energy would provide a major segment of that.

WestWave is working with four key technology partners towards the selection of the optimal device. These are Wavebob, Ocean Energy, Pelamis and Aquamarine Power, which is testing off Scotland’s Orkney Islands.

WestWave has been approved by the Government as one of two Irish bids for the € 4.5 billion in funding set aside by the European Union under the New Entrants Reserve (NER) 300 programme for low carbon technologies.

COMBINED losses of over € 24 million in Shannon Airport over the past three years means that Clare’s international airport has now reached a defining point in its 75-year history – the point from which it has to start paying for itself if it wants to retain its status as a key piece of infrastructure for the mid-west region.

This stark verdict was handed down by the Minister for Transport, Leo Varadkar, on Friday when visiting the county to lend his support for the Cliffs of Moher campaign to become one of the Seven Wonders of World Nature.

“The way things are going, Shannon will not be important anymore because there will be so few people going through it and I want it to be a strategic asset for the region,” Minister Varadkar said.

“There is a difficulty with Shannon. It is losing money. It is losing over € 8 million a year and in the past that was okay, because the profits in Dublin were enough to cover it, but Dublin isn’t making money any more either, largely as a consequence of T2, so we need to make sure that Shannon is sustainable in its own right.

“I would like to see Shannon operate as an autonomous entity running its own affairs, but that can only be done if it’s financially sustainable because there isn’t subsidies available for the airport. There wasn’t during the boom, there certainty isn’t now. We are certainly in a difficult position in terms of the budget,” Minister Varadkar added.

He made his comments while in Bunratty where he announced € 6.6m in tourism products around the country.

Charting a new future for Shannon has been farmed out by Minister Varadkar to a team of consultants – Booz & Company, to undertake a consultation process will all interested parties as to the best way forward for the former hub of the aviation world.

A key proposal being teased out by the consultants is a proposal submitted by Shannon Airport Authority director, Brian O’Connell, for the airport to be leased to private business for a period of between 15 to 35 years.

“The airport assets would remain in state ownership, but the operator would be private,” Mr Varadkar said of this proposal. “There are other options as well, for example making it a state company off its own bat. I am not convinced of any of them yet and that is the purpose of the process we are doing now.

“We are not in a position to write off any debts. A lot of State compa- nies have debts and in many cases they are self-inflicted. If we were writing off debts for one State asset, we would have to do it for others and that is not something we are in a position to do.”

“Shannon is a loss-making airport and the only sustainable future for an airport like Shannon is one where it is busy and you have a lot of people flying in and out. What we had over the last number of years is the airport been neglected by policymakers and the previous government and it can’t go on the way it is.”

“In the past that was OK as the profits at Dublin (airport) would cover them. Dublin is not making any money either, so we do need to ensure that Shannon is sustainable in its own right and turn it from what it is now, a liability for the DAA, into an asset for the country and the region,” Minister Varadkar added.

AN INITIATIVE in which parents of children in Clare with diabetes campaigned for better services has been hailed a success.

As part of the drive, 93 people in Clare sent 555 letters to their TDs requesting support for Diabetes Action’s campaign to improve services for children with diabetes.

It is estimated that between 90 and 100 children in Clare have Type 1 diabetes. Those children are referred to Galway or Limerick for treatment, while several are sent to Dublin.

In May of this year, a national campaign was launched in an effort to improve support for children with diabetes and the Clare branch played an integral role in this.

The services in Galway and Limerick are under-resourced, according to those behind the campaign.

“The HSE and the Department of Health have committed to six things and we will revisit it in six months’ time,” said the secretary of the Clare branch of Diabetes Ireland, Gráinne Flynn.

Among those six initiatives include the establishment of a policy group with a representative from the Diabetes Federation of Ireland to address pediatric diabetes care; to standardise hospital diabetes care across the country and to work on prevention and public health policy to prevent and aid early detection of diabetes in young children and adolescents.

“We are very happy with the outcome. Things take so long to come to the patient. We are delighted that they are making a commitment and we want them to follow through on it,” said Gráinne.

Meanwhile, to mark World Diabetes Day this weekend, Diabetes Ireland is bringing the National Diabetes Health Awareness Exhibition to the Rochestown Park Hotel in Cork on Sunday, November 13, from 12 noon to 5pm.

“It is open to people with diabetes in Clare. A few of us will travel to it. Pharmaceutical companies will have exhibitions there so we will be able to try out new products.

“There will be free consultations with dietitians, paediatrists and diabetes specialists. Some people are just curious about their own health and don’t have their own checks often so this will be an ideal opportunity to have it all in the one place,” said Gráinne.

“It is estimated there are 5,000 people in Clare with diabetes. It’s five per cent of the population. Type 2 diabetes is the more prevalent form. With Type 2, the symptoms only show up very slowly after a long period of time. There would be a high percentage of people who would have it and not know it.”.

World Diabetes Day, on November 14 every year, has grown to become a globally-celebrated event to increase awareness about diabetes.

For more information about the National Diabetes Health Awareness Exhibition, phone 1850 909 909 or email info@diabetes.ie.

GOVERNMENT TDs in the midwest region have been accused of standing idly by as transport minister Leo Varadkar prepares the way for Shannon Airport to be handed over to private operators.

Fianna Fáil Transport spokesperson and the county’s lone Dáil Éireann representative, Deputy Timmy Dooley, rounded on comments attributed to Minister Varadkar after his visit to Clare on Friday last, while at the same time hitting out at “the lack of comments” from local TDs from the Fine Gael and Labour benches over Shannon’s future.

“To hear that Minister Varadkar is considering handing over the run- ning of Shannon Airport to a private operator is disturbing,” said Deputy Dooley, “considering that the minister has just appointed a team of international consultants to advise on the ownership and management structures at Shannon Airport.

“It would seem to me that the Government should first wait for the conclusion of that process before considering any proposals. The minister’s comments are clearly aimed at leading the consultation towards a predetermined conclusion,” he added.

Since the proposal to semi-privatise Shannon through a lease agreement for between 15 and 35 years – contained in a submission to Government by SAA chairman, Brian O’Connell – first emerged in Sep- tember, Deputy Dooley has been the harshest critic of the plan.

“Operational losses at Shannon Airport are currently significant but it must be understood that we’re in the middle of the deepest global recession since 1929,” he said this week.

“While the problems at the respective airports must be addressed for sustainable regional development in the south and the mid -west regions, handing over the airport to private, profit-driven operators would not be in the region’s best interests.

“I am amazed at the lack of comments from Government representatives in the south and mid-west regions. They produced many fanciful proposals while in opposition but have remained surprisingly silent at a time when very serious decisions about the future of Cork and Shannon airports are being made,” he added.

THE Ennis bypass is to be used as a guinea pig by the National Roads Authority (NRA) to test the increasing problem of ‘ghost-drivers’ on the M18.

Ghost-driving is a new term coined to describe motorists who accidentally drive in the wrong direction on motorway onramps or off-ramps. In October of 2009, 72-year old Spanish Point woman Mary Doyle died after accidentally driving the wrong way on the N18 near Ennis.

The NRA have just completed the instillation of two signs at junctions on the M18 and, if the trial project proves successful, these signs will be rolled out across the country.

The state-of-the-art signs are activated using a radar system and flash to warn any drivers who approach the junction from the wrong direction.

“Ghost-driving takes place as a result of drivers entering the slip road in the wrong direction, travelling down the slip road in the cor- rect direction and then turning right towards on-coming traffic. Or it can take place when traffic stops on the dual carriageway and do a u-turn in the hard shoulder to travel back down the road,” Sean O’Neill of the NRA told The Clare People .

“This is not a major, widespread problem but, when it does happen, it can be very, very dangerous.”

The NRA plans

to monitor the suc

cess of the M18 pilot

scheme in the com

ing months and roll

the system out across

the country if it is

successful.

The system can be

put in place for a cost

of € 10,000 per junc

tion, meaning that

every junction on the

M18 in Clare could

be kitted out with the

system for less than

€ 250,000.

The trial radar-ac tivated signs are currently in place at junctions 13 and 14 on the M18, which includes the main Ennis offramp and the off-ramp for Scariff, Tulla and Ennis on the R352.

MORE THE € 60,000 has been allocated to two separate eco-tourism projects in north Clare. It is hoped that the announcement, which was made by the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Leo Varadkar (FG), in Clare on Friday, could have a large impact in helping to improve the Burren’s status as Ireland home for eco-tourism.

Funding of € 51,315 has been approved for a series of heritage walking trails in the Burren area. It is hoped that this funding will help to improve the existing walking and cycling infrastructure in the area. A further € 10,000 has also been allocated towards the further development of the existing cycle route in Doolin.

The € 60,000 was announced alongside seven other tourism projects for outside Clare whose combined budgets reach almost € 6.6 million. While the allocation for eco-tourism projects in Clare in comparatively small, locals hope that it can have a big impact.

“This is a great announcement and a huge benefit for north Clare. Walking tourism is getting bigger and bigger all the time – it is an area that is on the up and something that we can capatalise on up here in north Clare,” said Tony Kirby, owner of Heart of the Burren Walks and member of the Burren Eco-tourism Network.

“Walking tourism fits in very well with the idea of eco-tourism. It is about people coming and spending a real amount of time getting to know Clare and the people here. It is about giving them a fuller experience of the county and benefiting the local economy by having them stay here for a longer period.”

Earlier this years the Burren was officially designated as Ireland second certified eco-tourism destinations. A host of representatives from the local tourism industry have been working for more than three years to be trained and certified to take part in the Burren Eco-tourism Network.

The network has been going from strength to strength since it’s inception and more than 40 new members are currently being trained to become members of the Burren Ecotourism Network.

A MOVE to provide top-class sports amenities for the east Clare catchment of Killaloe and Ballina is expected to be taken a stage further this week with backing from Clare County Council planners for a range of new facilities.

The Ballina/Killaloe Sports and Development Facilities Development Company is behind plans to develop two new full-size playing pitches, an all-weather pitch, floodlit training areas, walking and cycling trails, changing and carparking facilities at a site in Moys, Killaloe.

The planning application for the development was lodged on June 15 last, with a deadline of this Wednesday laid down by Clare County Council for a final decision date on the proposal.

The move to provide extra sports facilities in the area comes a matter of months after the local GAA club on the Clare side of the Shannon, Smith O’Briens, was given the green light to develop a major club/community facility at its base on Shantraud.

In May, conditional planning permission was granted for an ambitious project that includes the development that includes a new clubhouse, changing rooms, a sports hall, meeting rooms, a hurling wall, an astroturf pitch and a spectator stand.

The Smith O’Briens club initiative is set to be funded by members of the local community themselves through an investors draw where a thousand people to pay € 4 a week to the development kitty – a contribution that works out at € 17.33 a week and € 208 over the year.

“For that, we will have a draw every month, giving away € 3,700 in cash prizes,” says Tony O’Brien of Smith O’Briens. “There will be 20 prizes including a top prize of € 1,000, two € 500 prizes, two € 250 prizes all the way down to eight € 50 prizes. The plan is to develop under the umbrella of the GAA, but it will be a community facility, open for everyone.

“The idea of the draw is that the community are investing in a facility for themselves. If we managed to get a thousand members we would raise over nearly € 500,000 for the project over three years,” he adds.

CLARE turf-cutters have vowed to take their fight to be allowed to continue the centuries-old practice of cutting turf to the corridors of Dáil Éireann, following the huge attendance at a public meeting that was staged in Moyasta last Thursday night.

The meeting in Garrihy’s Bar attracted nearly 250 turf-cutters from around the county, who stepped up their campaign by establishing a Clare branch of the Turf Cutters and Contractors Association.

Padraig Haugh has been elected chairman of the new group, while the national spokesperson for turfcutters in Dáil Éireann, Deputy Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan, has told The Clare People that the new Clare committee is the first step towards Clare turfcutters fighting for their rights.

“We left Moyasta with a committee – a chairman, and treasurer and a secretary, ready to take up the baton in the Clare area when it comes to fighting this issue,” said Deputy Flanagan, who attended Thursday night’s meeting in Moyasta.

“It was the biggest turnout I’ve ever seen at a meeting in Clare,” said chairman Padraig Haugh. “The crowd turned out in such numbers because this is a big issue, a very big issue and it’s not just in west Clare.

“I am secretary of the Creamery Milk Suppliers Association and I was speaking to colleagues over in east Clare and they are very worried about this too.

“Turf-cutting is vital to us, because it was always with us. I started farming in 1948 and I have been cutting turf for as long as that. It goes back centuries. We cannot be stopped cutting turf. We have to defeat this,” added Mr Haugh.

“The purpose of setting up the committee is that everyone in Clare who is involved in turf-cutting can feed into this group and deal with the issues as they come along. Tullaher Lough Bog is the one that’s most important at the moment as the ban has come in on that the end of this year,” contined Deputy Flanagan.

“We want to make sure that people in Clare can continue to cut turf. We have a report from the EPA which has a peatlands plan, which means people will need permits and will need to do studies in their area before they cut turf.

“We need to be ready for this battle down the line. Unless there is someone in Clare to represent turf-cutters, we are facing the distinct possibilty that there will be no turf cut in Clare in the near future,” Deputy Flanagan added.

CLARE County Council has announced plans to develop a 6,500tonne salt depot on the outskirts of Ennis.

The council is proposing to build a road maintenance depot for the region at Tulla Road, Ennis (old GAMA site), adjacent to Junction 13 of the N18 Motorway with access from the R352 Tulla Road from Ennis.

According to the council, the development will include offices, a storage area and workshop, car parking, salt barns, depot, weighbridge, hard standing area, ESB sub-station, refu- eling bay and an access road directly from the R352 road.

The development will also encompass ancillary services such as water supply, foul treatment, surface water collection, bounding and landscaping around the site, the diversion, protection and provision of utilities and construction of boundary treatments, accommodation works and fencing at required locations.

It is anticipated that the depot will be run by the National Roads Authority. The proposal was first revealed by County Engineer Tom Tiernan in September.

At the time, Mr Tiernan said the council’s winter maintenance pro- gramme would aim to cover 706km of the county’s road network in the event of severe freezing temperatures.

The council has put in place a winter service plan for national primary, national secondary and strategic regional roads. Mr Tiernan explained that priority will be given to the motorway, followed by national primary, national secondary and strategic regional routes.

That programme includes plans to further expand the council’s Beechpark depot to ensure that 3500 tonnes of salt are available in Clare over the winter period.

The council has spent € 1.1 million on winter maintenance during the past two years.

Local councillors have been critical of the NRA’s plans, saying they represented a duplication of services.

An ice detection and prediction system, ICENET, in conjunction with thermal mapping linked to weather stations in Crusheen M18, Kilrush N68, Lisdoonvarna N67 and Ogonnelloe R463, facilitates Clare County Council in its decision-making process regarding whether or when scheduled routes should be treated.

Submissions or observations with respect to the proposed Tulla Road development may be made in writing up to and including December 23.