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that dumping has escalated to a completely unacceptable level.

“The current warden is doing a

fine job but it’s a big area to cover,

spreading from Westbury all the way into Clare. He can’t be working twenty four hours a day, seven days a week,” the Labour councillor said.

Cllr Fitzgerald, who runs a food business 1n the Westbury Centre, says there has been a marked increase in illegal dumping in recent months.

“T come in in the morning and my bin has bags of other people’s rub- bish in it. Householders in the area ring me angry that they put out their bins for collection and overnight, other people come along and fill the

bins up. At every bottle bank, you see cardboard boxes dumped and drive out to Broadford and there’s rubbish just dumped at the side of the road.”

The councillor believes that people are dumping at night and at week- ends, knowing that the litter warden can’t work every weekend.

“IT saw a pick-up truck drive past me last Sunday loaded down with bags of rubbish. That was at 2pm on a Sunday. The truck drove towards Clare and I saw it coming back at

3.30pm empty. Now where did those bags of rubbish end up? There was no official landfill or recycling place open on Sunday.”

Cllr Fitzgerald said he is also ask- ing the director of services to tell him how many fines and court pros- ecutions there have been for littering in the east Clare area.

‘People are dumping because they know they won’t be caught or penal- ised. We need more than one person to enforce this legislation. It’s getting out of hand.”

CLARE IFA members were among the large crowd of milk suppliers who marched in protest to the Kerry group headquarters in Tralee last week to express their dissatisfac- tion at the group’s failure to lift its June and July milk price, and at Ker- ry’s slippage down the milk price league.

Addressing the suppliers, IFA Dep- uty President Derek Deane said the

protest was being staged to ensure that the Kerry Group clearly under- stood their anger at Kerry’s recent milk price policy.

“Kerry used to be a milk price leader, setting the pace for the in- dustry, and always paying a top price. They have since fallen back to ninth position out of 13 in the 2007 Farmers Journal/KPMG audit. This July, Kerry has slipped once again, and is paying its suppliers less than the other two big milk purchasers,

Dairygold and Glanbia. Kerry’s own suppliers now feel their company is more committed to the stock market than it is to them,’ he added.

‘Kerry has scale, efficiency and a diversified, high value product mix that puts it in an strong position to pay a leading milk price – indeed it used to have a proud record of doing so in the past. Kerry must immedi- ately pay an extra 2c/I for July milk, and commit to pay a leading milk price for the rest of 2008 and for the

future,’ Derek Deane said.

IFA National Dairy Committee Chairman Richard Kennedy added, “Kerry is letting its suppliers down at the worst possible time. Farmers are now faced with massive cost in- creases threatening their profitabil- ity, which they are in no position to pass back. Now more than ever they need Kerry to deliver the strong- est possible milk price – but Kerry is deliberately dragging its heels on the July price, paying 1.6c/l less than

Glanbia (allowing for their recent 2c/ | top up), and Ic/I less than Dairy- gold.”

“Kerry milk producers are sending a clear message to all the directors of the PLC board today: Kerry must ur- gently revise its milk pricing policy. Kerry suppliers are demanding to be back at the top of the price league. Kerry must pay an additional 2c/l for July, and regain its once proud place as a strong milk price leader,” Rich- ard Kennedy concluded.

THE negative effect of the Aer Lin- gus decision to abandon its Shannon/ Heathrow route is highlighted in the latest figures which show the airport losing almost 70,000 passengers on its London routes since the start of the year.

Figures released by the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) show that Shannon has lost 68,423 passengers on its London routes for the first sev- en months of the year.

Figures for July show a drop of 16 per cent or 11,423 passengers to and from London on the corresponding period last year when the Heathrow service was in place.

Ryanair has introduced an addi- tional service to try to make up for the shortfall but they are failing to make up the deficit.

Ryanair has increased passenger numbers on its Stansted service from 29,333 to 33,946 for July and also increased its Gatwick number from 10,902 last year to 18,915.

The airline also launched a Luton service that delivered 8,171 in July. However, the new service doesn’t make up for the 32,220 that used the Shannon Heathrow service in July 2007.

Many passengers in the Mid-west are going to Cork to fly to Heath- row and the Cork Airport Authority (CAA) continues to benefit at Shan- non’s expense.

Cork increased its passenger num- bers to and from Heathrow during July by 19 per cent on the corre-

sponding month last year. The airport recorded a 13.5 per cent increase on its London Heathrow service for the first six months, going from 224,669 for the first six months of last year to 255,000 from January to June 2008. The bad news for Shannon was not confined to the London market with the economic downturn contributing to a drop of 11 per cent in passenger numbers to other UK destinations in July. 48,739 passengers used Shan- non to and from other UK destina- tions compared to 55,349 last year.

Routes to show a drop in traffic include Glasgow Prestwick (down 1,558); Nottingham (down 4,142) and Liverpool (down 1,314).

However, other routes performed well including Bournemouth (up 772) and Manchester (up 2,237).

With a number of Ryanair routes not performing as well as they did last year, airport management will be wary of Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary’s comment that Shannon is only one of two Ryanair basses that is losing money.

SHANNON’S Social Diary has been part of community life for as long as most of its citizens can remember.

Now the diary is not just helping the people of Shannon plan their coming fortnight, it is also giving them an insight into their past as a 1970s copy of the popular newsletter has surfaced.

Discovered in the electricity box of a house that was being cleared out, the blast from the past now has pride of place in the Shannon Community Office.

The one page document typed on a manual typewriter all those years

ago by Ina Reddan, is a mini social record of Shannon in the seventies.

Headlining with tennis, ballroom dancing, and the cinema the inform- ative document gives an insight into the lifestyle of another generation.

Adult art classes at night cost just £2 for 20 lessons in Shannon Com- prehensive School.

On Friday October 30 a sale of work was held in Drumgeely Com- munity Hall by the local scouts. Ad- mission was a mere six pence and that included raffle tickets.

St Senan’s Parent and Teachers As- sociation and the ladies choir were also making use of the leaflet almost four decades ago.

The former lady mayor of Limer- ick, who was mayor when President John F Kennedy visited Ireland, Mrs Francis Clondel was also preparing to address the ICA according to the 1970 social diary.

The diary continues to be issued by the community office almost 40 years later, and the current staff are hoping to find an even older diary.

The community office which also houses Clarecare and the Citizen In- formation Office, is opposite Murphy Brown’s pub and 1s inviting people to drop in older “social diaries” if they Crim yam sinemeenee

The 1970 diary has already been laminated and the public are free to

ata Le

Funded and developed originally by Shannon Development the diary was then handed over to the commu- nity office. Today 3,700 diaries are delivered every second week to all the homes in Shannon and it is sup- ported by local advertising.

Rita Costello, who works with the CIC, told

A CLARE athlete, who won five medals at the World Transplant Games last year, is to seek interna- tional glory once again — and she has been boosted by a recent victory in her local golf club’s captain’s prize.

Lahinch woman Marie O’Connor arrived home from the Bangkok Games last September with two gold medals for golf, two silver medals for squash and the 200m, and a bronze for the 100m — and now she’s off to Wurzburg Germany, for the Euro- pean Transplant Games.

Ireland will send 24 athletes to the Games in Wurzburg, from August 31 to September 6, and they will be joined by family and friends. “It’s not about the medals, but about the chance to celebrate the gift of life. That’s what makes these Games so special,’ said team manager Colin AW avin

Marie stresses the importance of organ donors and the need to create a greater awareness of the benefit of organ donation. She underwent her second kidney transplant in 1998 after an unsuccessful transplant in 1996.

“IT was quite competitive before I got sick. I played football and cam- ogie. When the doctors said I said I couldn’t play contact sport I was dev- astated,’ she said.

“But my motto in life is that you don’t give up. I started to play golf and I really enjoy it.”

Just recently, she won the captain’s prize at the local golf club and she hopes this is a good omen in advance of the European Games, which aim to highlight the importance of organ donation and the benefits of healthy IVovauetoadevneletca omy ole) um

They also allow the athletes an op- portunity to give thanks for the gift of their transplants.

Marie first became sick just before Christmas in 1990. She was three months in hospital before her kidney problems were diagnosed.

After three and a half years on dialysis Marie received a kidney in 1996. “The dialysis is tough but you get used to it, it becomes a part of your life,” she said.

Unfortunately the transplant did not take, and the Clare received a second kidney donation in 1998. This year she will celebrate the tenth anniver- sary of the second transplant.

“I live for the moment. That’s what I have learned. You enjoy every day,’ added Marie.

For organ donor cards free text the word *“DONOR’ to 50050 or log on to www.ika.ie for more information.

You can follow the progress of the Irish team at the Games on www. transplantteamireland.com.

I went to get in that way. When I in his sister’s living room waiting to pulled the latch, the glass broke.” loLome DU KINO MANS OMON eA ArT OBA VOOR A JUDGE yesterday jailed a man for He told the court that the window “He is very apologetic. He didn’t four months for breaking a window __ had been cracked before he broke it. | mean to break the window and im- in his sister’s house. Gardai agreed that Maughan was mediately said he would pay for it as

Michael Maughan (34) with ad- dresses at 18 Beechwood, Clare- castle and 20 Stone Court, Ennis pleaded guilty but said breaking the window at his sister’s house at Station Court Road on August 24 was an accident.

He told Judge Leo Malone that he had been staying with his sister and there were some papers at her house which he needed to bring to Bushy Park where he is trying to get a place to deal with his drink problem.

“I knocked at the door but there was no answer and I know she leaves the back window open so

soon as possible,’ Maughan’s so- licitor, Tara Godfrey said.

Maughan, who has more than 30 previous convictions, had ap- peared before the same court last week on charges of theft and as- sault on a staff member at Dunnes NIKO tee

Judge Leo Malone had imposed fines and a suspended sentence on that occasion but said that he “gave this man a chance on sub- stantial charges last week. I won’t be giving him another one.”

NEW recycling services are to be installed in Quin with a new bottle bank facility to be set up in the vil- lage.

The bank will be located near Has- sett’s Pun in Quin at a site offered by local publican Malachy Hassett. It is anticipated that the bank will be open and ready for use by the local community within the next month.

According to local Fine Gael coun- cilor Sonny Scanlon, the facility 1s

a welcome development given the growing population in Quin and the Surrounding areas.

He explained, “It was something we have been looking for, for a long time. Its well known that the popula- tion in Quin has been increasing for some time and we needed a facility like this”.

Cllr Scanlon thanked Malachy Has- sett for providing the space needed for the bottle bank. “I would like to thank Malachy for providing the bit of land for it, we couldn’t have got his

up and going without his help. We would expect that the place would be open by September”’.

Cllr Scanlon added that the provi- sion of long overdue recycling serv- ices in Quin were an important step in keeping and maintaining the ap- pearance of the village.

“Its great that we are finally getting it. As I said before its been coming a long time and it is something we have needed. We have a growing population and developments like this are important in ensuring Quin

stays tidy”’.

Bottle banks and recycling centre, operated by Clare County Council, have become regular features in vil- lages and towns around the county.

The council operates recycling cen- tres in Ennis, Shannon, the Lisdeen recycling centre and transfer station, Kilkee and at the Scariff recycling centre and transfer station.

In an effort to halt the incidents of illegal dumping, many of the stations are monitored by closed circuit tel- evision cameras.

CLARE County Council has already refused planning permission to one park and ride scheme for the Cliffs of Moher and opposition is mounting against two others planned for the north Clare area.

Last week, the council turned down planning permission to At- lantis Development for a park and ride at Roadford, Doolin. This was the third application from the north

Clare company with the other two proposals for Liscannor and Coogy- ulla, Doolin facing strong local op- position.

Atlantis subsequently withdrew these applications and _ re-lodged them last month.

An objection to the Coogyulla pro- posal signed by 20 local residents, states that Doolin suffers from being so spread out and lacking a strong central focus and the development of a facility so far outside the village

will exacerbate this lack of focus and result in a lost opportunity for the community.

“The development will draw the village further to this location as fur- ther projects locate around the park and ride facility. No justification has been put forward for the selection of this site for the facility. What makes it suitable and what will the impact be on Doolin and its environs?

‘There is no rural park and ride fa- cility of the nature and type that is

now proposed and where it 1s not run by the operator of the tourist facility which it serves.

“Insufficient information has been lodged with the application to enable the full planning implications and impacts of the development to be considered.

“The application should include an EIS given its nature, extent and con- text. The location is being put for- ward without any assessment of its impact on the sustainable develop-

ment of Doolin and its environs.

‘This trial system was never oper- ated and no one knows exactly how it will work. It also appears now that the development of park n ride is not going to be operated by the Council, but is to be left to private enterprise both in Doolin and Liscannor,”’ the objection concludes.

The proposal for Liscannor has also attracted a lot of opposition within the village and decisions are due next month.

A DRUMBIGGLE man, who took a Swipe at a Garda patrol car with an axe, has a history of mental difficul- ties a judge was told.

34-year-old Sean Sullivan of 16 Waterpark Heights, Drumbiggle, pleaded guilty to an offence under the Firearms Act when he appeared before Ennis District Court yester- day.

The court heard evidence that gardai were called to Waterpark on May 2, 2007, where they found Sulli- van in conversation with his mother.

A Garda witness told the court that as they arrived on the scene “Sul- livan had his back to us. When he turned around he was holding an axe and when he spotted us, he rushed at the patrol car and swung the axe.

Thankfully, no one was hurt.”

Sullivan’s solicitor, Tara Godfrey produced letters from a consultant psychiatrist and told the court that her client had a history of depression and manic episodes.

He had been diagnosed with At- tention Deficit Disorder and has been suffering the negative effects of being cared for in institutions as PO NEen

“He goes through periods where he is stabilised and is quite able to cope. We would ask the court to ex- tend bail conditions but if a sentence is being imposed we would ask that it not be too long a sentence, as it 1s virtually impossible for him to re- ceive proper treatment for his prob- lems 1n prison.”

Judge Leo Malone imposed a two month jail sentence.

CLARE Youth Service in Shannon is looking for volunteers to work with young people. There are several vol- unteering opportunities for anyone aged 21 or over interested in working with young people aged 12 to 25.

There are opportunities in both Youth Clubs, Drumgeely and Sky- view which will be re-opening in September when the schools return. There are also volunteers needed to help supervise and work with young people in the Kick Back Youth Cafe and Shannon Music Project at week- ends.

The Youth Service will be sending

a flyer to homes in the area with the September newsletter, outlining de- tails of what’s involved.

There are new developments in ac- tivities for young people in the town also. Five-a-side Basketball and soc- cer nights are planned for Shannon Leisure Centre in September.

‘The hall has been booked for four weeks initially and if the program takes off it is hoped that the weekly Wednesday slot will continue and this will benefit those who are inter- ested in sport and keeping fit as well as keeping the youth workers fit,” a spokesman for the Youth Service Cr HKOR

The cost is €2 per night as it is sub-

sidised by the Youth Service and they are looking for 10 to 15 people to sign up and commit to the four weeks of it. Anyone interested should contact Cathal or Pat in the Youth Office to register their name.

The Shannon Music Project has once again availed of the expertise of a local guitar teacher for the coming winter term.

Paul O’ Donoghue (Swive) has again kindly offered his services to the Music Project to teach advanced classes in electric guitar to 10 to 12 young people from the project.

The classes are designed for those who have more than a year’s experi- ence in electric guitar and are inter-

ested in learning new techniques.

The lessons begin Wednesday September 10 at 4:45pm in Respond Building, Rineanna View. They run for 15 weeks at the same time and day each week until December 17.

Anyone interested in signing up for the lessons should contact Ca- thal in Shannon Youth Office 061 364318/087 1374482 before Sep- tember 1 to secure their place in the class.

“The lessons are free of charge and Shannon Music Project would like to thank Swive for volunteering his expertise to the project again this year, it is very much appreciated”, the spokesman said.