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A NEWMARKET-ON-FERGUS couple has claimed that if planning permission is granted for a grey- hound-training operation near the village, it will expose agricultural animals to a serious risk of death by marauding packs of greyhounds. Last year, Clare County Council eranted planning permission to Leo McNulty to retain seven greyhound kennels, a training track, 11 enclosed eCoyea meu etomreDeLGmr- Mees noaYd eLO)UN NCO Mus) OF:1 O00 R-e

tion unit incorporating 20 kennels.

However, the plan encountered stiff local opposition. A number of ap- peals have now been lodged with An Bord Pleanala.

In an appeal to An Bord Pleanala, consultant for Gerard and Joan Mc- Mahon, John Garrett stated, “It is our very firm belief that this devel- opment is not in keeping with the ex- isting rural character of this area, has and will affect neighbours’ ability to enjoy the residential amenity of their existing properties, exposes agricul-

tural animals to serious risk of death by marauding packs of greyhounds should an escape occur and limits the future development potential of sig- nificant areas of surrounding areas.”

Mr Garrett states, “The council, subsequent to the granting of per- mission, is seeking a management system and noise survey. Having re- gard to the community’s experience to date, it is our respectful submis- sion that this approach endangers the rural community contrary to the common good.”

As part of the decision to grant planning, the council required Mr McNulty to carry out a comprehen- sive noise survey of the dogs on site.

However, Mr Garnett said, “It is our submission that the condition is aspirational in nature and provide no specific measurable, achievable or realistic proposals that will serve to protect the community at large where there is already unease regarding this development as a result of noise from the development in so far as it has been constructed to date.

Mr Garnett continued, “The add1i- tional 20 kennels represent a further development with the potential to ex- acerbate an already serious problem for the community.

“It is our respectful submission that the adverse experience of several neighbours should take precedence over the specialist noise surveys which formed part of the planning application.

“The application has attracted a number of negative submissions which we believe all have merit.”

EAST Clare’s potential as a centre for horticulture was given a further boost this week with the news that Tuamgraney company, Glenbrook Nursery Ltd was to receive funding under the Government’s National Development Plan (2007-2013).

The Raheen company, which 1s op- erated by Philip Moreau, will receive some €15,000 to invest in the pro- duction of nursery crops.

This is the latest in a line of good news stories for the company, having last year put up a great showing at the annual National Amenity Horti- CHUN AU oma Ne BKC he

The awards are run by Horticulture

Ireland and Bord Bia.

Glenbrook Nursery was the only Clare company to pick up an award in the award’s Nursery Quality Pro- eramme.

This voluntary quality assurance scheme is designed to assist Irish nurseries reach best practice in com- mercial nursery crop production and management systems. It sets out a code of practice for the efficient run- ning of a nursery business and pro- vides a standard against which nurs- ery businesses are evaluated.

Commenting on last week grant allocation, Clare Minister of State, Tony Killeen, said the Grant Scheme for the Development of the Horti- culture Sector continued to provide

wonderful opportunities for Clare crop producers to make on-farm in- vestments.

“Since 2000, there has been a year on year increase in the level of inter- est in the scheme, which reflects the high degree of confidence among Clare’s producers in the future of the Sector,’ he said.

“I would encourage shoppers to support local producers who are striving to meet the highest stand- ards. By supporting them we are making an investment in our own community.

“IT would also like to compliment the two local applicants who have been successful in the grant scheme announced by my colleague Mr

Trevor Sargent TD, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, with special re- sponsibility for horticulture.”

The grant aid provided under the scheme covers all areas of the horti- cultural production sector, including mushrooms, protected crops, nursery crops, field vegetables, soft fruits, soft apples and even bee-keeping.

Horticultural output in Ireland is now valued at over €300 million and retail sales are an estimated €650 nSpON BONER

There was also celebrations in north Clare this week as a grower of protected crops in Belharbour was granted some €7,000 under the scheme.

MISSION VALE can teach the rest of the world a thing or two about recy- cling. Nothing that finds its way into the care centre goes to waste.

Recycling allows the centre’s staff to buy bread every day for the feed- ing station.

The people who queue for food bring something which can be recy- cled and that in turn is sold on to pay for the bread.

They collect a half loaf of bread and a scoop of soup mix and at week- ends, some rice or potatoes and an onion, along with any meat donated to the centre.

The process serves the dual purpose of giving people the dignity of doing something in exchange for their food and making inroads into the mounds of litter which the authorities never collect.

Crumbs created in the cutting of bread aren’t swept into a bin, they’re added to the powdered soup mix which is given out to families.

The styrofoam lunch boxes that

contain the volunteers’ lunches are all saved and will also be recycled and every bit of leftover, including the tiny jams are taken down the site to give to the township people work- ing on the care centre.

When the volunteers leave, their clothes will be given to the centre.

The Summerstrand Hotel where the Irish are staying has opened it’s store cupbord to Missionvale and do- nated dozens of old but perfect tow- els, sheets and pillowcases.

On most building sites, bits of bro- ken brick and end pieces of timber are a problem. In Missionvale, the leftovers from the care centre which the Irish are building have been used to construct a little raised garden and a seat.

The most poignant bit of recycling of all happens outside the kitchen door each evening. After every batch of scones baked for the volunteers, the crumbs from the baking trays were tipped into a plastic bag and given to one of the township children who come to play in Missionvale’s ee N KOE

CALLS have been made for each of the Burren’s estimate 1,000 farmers to adopt a new labour intensive plan for farming their land.

The call was made yesterday, dur- ing day two of the BurrenLIFE Project (BLP) Conference in En- nistymon, where Burren IFA Presi- dent, Michael Davoren, suggested local farmers should be looking to export “orchid-rich grassland” rather than more traditional farm produce.

The conference, which 1s the first of

it’s kind ever to take place in Ireland, aims at designing an economically viable way of preserving the fragile Burren landscape.

‘There is a need for local resources to work to create a unique manage- ment plan for each farm in the Bur- ren and to monitor the environmental work required,’ said Mr Davoren.

“Orchid-rich grasslands and other habitats will become the new prod- ucts. A labour-intensive method of farming is essential in this environ- ment but a farmer needs to earn an income from doing this very neces-

sary work to preserve the Burren for future generations.”

The conference marks the fourth year in operation for the Carron based BurrenLIFE Project, which has been working towards generat- ing a blueprint for sustainable farm- ing not just in Ireland, but across the EU.

Project head, Dr Brendan Dunford, revealed yesterday that this blueprint would be launched before August of next year.

‘Farming is the key land use to have shaped this landscape in the past,

and will continue to play a key role in shaping it in future. It 1s critical therefore that we identify and sup- port sustainable farming systems for the Burren, and that we do it now,” he said.

“While the BurrenLIFE project will soon finalise a blueprint for sus- tainable farming of the Burren, this will need to be adopted urgently and wholeheartedly by the relevant au- thorities if we are to secure the re- gion’s rich heritage for generations to come.

“We welcome this conference as

an opportunity to celebrate the work achieved by the BLP and partners over the past four years, but also, as we approach the end of the project, to pose the question of where do we 20 from here.”

According to Dr Andrew Bleasdale of the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), the challenge now is how best to implement the find- ings of the BurrenLIFE Project.

“The project will provide a conser- vation-friendly road-map for farm- ing not just in the Burren but also in other parts of the country,’ he said.

HUNDREDS of Doolin locals and music lovers turned out on Sunday to celebrate the lives of a group of remarkable local men. Almost a year to the day since his passing, family and friends of Jack Garrihy turned out to lay a wreath on his grave and pay their final respects.

Jack’s grandson, Jack Garrihy Jnr, placed a wreath on the grave while son Eugene read a poem from the mortuary card and Michael O’Connell sang a song over the grave.

Earlier on Sunday, Pat Sweeney had laid the commemorative wreath on the Russell family grave, taking over from the duties done up until now by Jack Garrihy.

While the wreath was being laid, Gussie McMahon sang a song written about the Rus- sell brothers and local musicians played at the fea ee Mery (OL

The ceremony was the culmination of the Russell Traditional Music festival which was this year dedicated to the memory of Jack Gar- UU Ons

SPRING continues to awaken in north Clare with a number of artistic ventured taking place in north Clare and south Galway in the coming Neto) .e

On March 1, Rahaly Castle in Gort will be the venue for a Night of Mu- sic and Storytelling in aid of Cystic Fibrosis Ireland.

Organised by the Spirit of Voice, the evening will include featuring music from Café Kinvara including instrumental performances from Eu- rope, Russia, South America and Af- rica, songs from Ireland and French and American jazz and folk.

Other highlights include Australian storyteller Matthew Noone who will

use African drums, Indian lutes and the odd touch of rockin guitar which creates a sensory experience of the myths and folk tales.

MC for the evening is Gort Slam Poet Marty Mulligan of Electric Pic- nic and Glastonbury fame.

Limited seats so advance at €20 from the Gallery Cafe Hostel in Gort on 091 630630.

Meanwhile, The Gallery of the Bur- ren College of Art in Ballyvaughan is currently hosting an exhibition of Irish works entitled Peer-to-Peer.

The exhibition is the culmination of a portrait project involving the artists and mentors in the Kilkenny Collective for Arts Talent (KCAT). In an environment where the learn- ing between mentor and studio art-

ists goes both ways, this exhibition visually highlights those involved.

All the artists picked names from a hat in order to determine their sub- ject, then began the challenge of de- ciding how to portray and represent their peer.

There were no restrictions on meth- od or materials, and work produced includes print, paint, woodcut, stitch, sculpture and collage. An integral part of the process was the free-flow- ing interaction between each artist and subject, communicating styles and intentions for their work.

KCAT is a research partner in the Arts Council’s Touring Experiment. The show has traveled to Kilkenny Design Centre, Airfield Trust, Garter Lane Arts Centre Waterford, Aras

Eanna Inis Oirr before arriving at the Burren College of Art Clare.

KCAT is a Camphill project pio- neering inclusive arts and adult edu- cation programmes. It currently runs a FETAC Level 5 Art Course funded by Kilkenny VEC for people from different backgrounds and an Arts Council funded Studio where pro- fessional artists with special needs work in an inclusive environment.

It also run a FETAC Level 5 Thea- tre Performance Course based on the same inclusive ideas.

The work in this exhibition goes on tour and is in principle not for sale. However those interested can contact KCAT on 056-7755115 or check out www.burrencollege.ie for more de- NOES

AT THE weekend, Bishop of Killa- loe, Willie Walsh, officially blessed a building that everyone in the know said couldn’t happen.

In just eight weeks — 28 labouring days — 165 volunteers and their work- ers from the Port Elizabeth township erected a new health centre and hos- pice against all odds.

For weeks, the activity on site was frenzied, with volunteers gulping breakfast, boarding the bus at 6.30am and working until 6pm or later in the evening.

The first crew to arrive were con- fronted with the daunting sight of the huge foundations and a mountain of blocks waiting to be laid.

Alan Carmody from Lisseycasey, the foreman with the first group, said he “got a shock when I saw the size 0) Mad otom obun Conberca

But everyone, including the locals, got stuck in and worked hard. It was so exciting to be involved. We’ll nev- er forget it.”

The teams pushed on through days of hard slog in punishing heat and before the first crew left, they had laid 130,000 blocks.

The next team cooked as the sun beat down on the silver, reflective material of the roof while they sealed the building.

The tradesmen did what they’re best at and everybody else did what they were told, whether it was painting, plumbing or carrying never ending supplies of water to labourers work- ing in puddles of their own sweat.

Each of the 62 windows had to have up to 16 panes of glass put in and gla- Ziers used half a ton of putty.

Workers laid 168 cubic meters of mortar and the volunteers downed 2,330 litres of bottled water .

In the scorching African sun, the builders of hope used 11 kilos of sun- block. And still they burned.

By the time the final team arrived, the structure had taken shape but there was still an enormous amount of plumbing, painting, plastering, til- ing, hanging ceilings and carpentry to do. And that was all before the massive clean up began.

Finally, everything was in ship shape, with the exception of the the floor covering which had to be put on the long finger because the floors had been laid so fast they hadn’t time to dry.

But the Irish carried the criac with them in their suitcases. Tin whistles, come all-ye’s, slagging matches be- tween teams of workers, ludicrous match making attempts and requests to fill the hotel swimming pool with aletoj mrs l MN eCom Ne OlMmNe Com abnE

As supervisor on site for the entire project, Jimmy Kenny from Dublin said, ‘We had a laugh’.

AN EAST Clare-based company has secured planning permission for a project that will allow it to supply up to half of its energy costs from alter- native energy.

Clare County Council has granted planning permission to Olympus D1- agnostica for a 200 foot high wind turbine on the site of the facility near O’Callaghan’s Mills.

The company has overcome the council’s concerns in relation to a device that is designed to scare away

bats from the structure.

The company stated that in rela- tion to the nature and scale and use of the proposed development, the policies of the County Development Plan and the pattern of development in the area, the proposed develop- ment would not seriously injure the amenities of the area and would not be prejudicial to public health.

In the planning application lodged with Clare County Council, Olym- pus is “seeking a solution which would meet a portion 40-50 per cent of our electrical base load using al-

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The company stated that it would consume all the energy from the wind-turbine and there was no need for a grid connection. It stressed that the proposal turbine didn’t lie with- in any recognised flight path of the Whooper Swan and the Greenland White Fronted Goose.

In a submission lodged with the plan, the company stated: “The ra- tionale for this project has its roots in spiralling energy costs which are set by international markets and impact severely for two reasons:

the wide fluctuation in energy costs which make financial planning more difficult and the underlying trend is upwards.”

Stressing its adherence to “corpo- rate social responsibility”, Olympus pointed out that it had already re- duced its greenhouse emissions by putting in place a wood chip burner instead of oil which also created a lo- cally-based market for wood-chip.

The company stated that the noise emissions from the wind-turbine will be lower than similar sized turbines.

Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) said yes-

terday, “It is a positive move. I am delighted with the decision of Clare County Council and I hope that other Koy enh oy-bauCecmayya 00s ce) 0 Ce) annetcs bane) ome

The company also stated that the Clare County Development Plan had deemed the location “a suitable area for wind energy” and didn’t have any scenic or environmentally sensitive OLAS hea sree ley ekse

The company also stated that it has held a number of local meetings and had relocated the wind-turbine from its original location in response to local concerns.

A PRIVATE company has secured a licence from the Department of Transport to provide a town-wide bus service in Ennis for the first time.

The unidentified company secured the service even though Bus Eireann submitted a proposal to the depart- ment to operate a Service.

In response to a Dail question from Timmy Dooley, the Minister for Transport, Noel Dempsey, said, “I can confirm that my department re- ceived a proposal from Bus Eireann to provide bus passenger services in /Syeebacy

“On 20 November, 2007, the pro- posal was noted by my department and the company was advised ac- cordingly.

“The introduction of this new serv- ice 18 an operational matter for Bus Eireann.

“On 29 January, 2008, in accord- ance with the Road Traffic Act 1932, my department issued a licence to a private operator for an Ennis town Sos ata Gon

“All licences issued have standard conditions associated with them and compliance with those conditions 1s the responsibility of the service op- erator in each instance.

‘A condition of all licences includes the requirement whereby the service must be in operation in its entirety within four months from the date of

issue of the licence.” Deputy Dooley told

BALLY VAUGHAN poet on artist, Frank Golden launched his latest book of poetry at the Burren College of Art in Ballyvaughan on Saturday evening.

The book, entitled In Daily Accord, is a Selection of short poems written on a daily basis over a twenty month period.

Golden came to the idea after un- dertaking a series of daily drawings, where he undertook a series a daily sketches over a prolonged period of time.

He began to write the series of short poems on his birthday, May 16 2003,

and continued to add a poem each day for more than two years.

“Sometime the poems are quite de- scriptive, and other times they can be much more personal. But as with anything done over such a length of time, certain voices, personalities, locales and dramas crop up and play WaLesbeKToy Atos @)ULIMOMN SLomST-NT OD

‘Because you are writing every day, things that happen during your day can often appear. So, if I had gone for a walk on Black Head one day, likely as not that will crop figure in a poem in one way of another. Over the course of the years I wrote some 1000 poems, so the book is just a se- lection of this work.”

The poems are loosely based on Haiku and Senryu forms with the book following a roughly seasonal order, with poems from each month being grouped together.

Frank was joined at the launch by fellow readers Valerie Whelan and John Doorty while a musical back- drop was provided by composer An- drew Collins.

‘There are introspective and they are questioning, they are more like distillations than a real narrative. I guess, there 1s a since of a life, lived on a daily basis,’ he continued.

“The thing about these poems is that they are very small in nature, so it was difficult to know how we could

present them in a public setting. I de- cided to have Valerie and Frank who would read a slightly altered version of the poem and create an inverted echo for each poem.

Frank has been living in the Bur- ren for some twenty years, and has been resident in Ballyvaughan for the bulk of that time. It has been a productive period for him, seeing the publication of four books of poems, a novel and a number of exhibitions of his paintings.