Category: Uncategorized

A TOP level meeting is going ahead this week to prioritise key tourism marketing actions which are needed immediately and will now be pos- sible as the Government has an- nounced €3 million in funding to meet Open Skies.

Commenting on the Government announcement of the fund, a Shan- non Development spokesperson said, “It is good that we have certainty and commitment for a dedicated fund which will allow us to move forward

without delay and use the funds to implement a top-class North Amer1i- can tourism marketing campaign. As part of the implementation group for the allocation of the funds, Shan- non Development will meet early next week with the other appointed representatives to prioritise a set of key tourism marketing actions which will be undertaken immediately.” The plan, which will result in an an- ticipated €15 to €20 million over the next few years, will be implemented by tourism interests in the region. It incorporates investment in infra-

structure and tourism development in the mid-west, as well as a forward- working plan for the autonomy of Shannon Airport.

This plan was drawn up in consul- tation with a number of Government departments and pays regard to a re- port entitled ‘Mid-West Tourism and Economic Development Plan’ which was submitted by a group under the aegis of the Mid West Regional Au- thority, taking in Clare County Coun- cil, Shannon Development, Shannon Airport Authority (SAA), SIGNAL and IBEC.

Responding to the announcement, SAA Chairman, Mr Pat Shanahan said that the marketing fund is a sig- nificant development in meeting the challenges brought about under the new Open Skies era.

“Shannon Airport Authority wel- comes the Government commitment to invest in a major tourism market- ing strategy to stimulate tourism traf- fic into the west of Ireland through Shannon in the post-Open Skies en- ab KO)eNeelssOLm

“We look forward to working with tourism agencies to ensure the return

from this funding is maximised,” he Sr nKOe

Meanwhile, Clare Deputy, Timmy Dooley also welcomed the funding, stating that Clare will reap economic rewards from commitments outlined in the plan.

“T am delighted that, following a series of discussions with colleagues such as myself in the mid-west, Transport Minister, Noel Dempsey TD and Arts, Sports, and Tourism Minister, Seamus Brennan TD, have come forward with a plan as compre- hensive as this.”

A CONTRACTOR to begin work on the new sewage scheme in Corofin should be in place before the begin- ning of April, but little progress has been made on the Doolin scheme, the North Clare Area Meeting of Clare County Council heard yesterday.

Responding to a motion put for- ward by Ennistymon Cllr Richard Nagle, Senior Engineer of the Water Services, Walter Walshe, said that a new proposal to connect the Doolin scheme to the existing Lisdoonvarna scheme is being examined.

He also said that the Department of Communications, Marine and Natu- ral resources had recently granted a foreshore licence for the Bally- vaughan scheme.

Regarding Ballyvaughan, Cllr Na- gle said, “I am delighted about the eranting of the foreshore licence. The licence has been one of the main obstacles blacking the scheme for a long time.

“Doolin, unfortunately is still un- der consideration. | know that the council is looking at the possibility

of pumping it into the system in Lis- doonvarna system and hopeful some progress will be made on that soon. Doolin 1s in chronic need of a sewer- age system.

“The new proposal of pumping the sewage to Lisdoonvarna could be a lot cheaper than the previously men- tioned stand alone facility in Doo- thee

Cllr Martin Lafferty (Ind) criti- cised what he described as “mislead- ing” information circulated about the Doolin scheme.

‘That proposal to pump the sewage from Doolin up to Lisdoonvarna was made ten years ago. There is a huge need for this in Doolin and there is Spare capacity in Lisdoonvarna,” said Cllr Lafferty.

“There was a confused article in one of the local papers regarding the funding for the Doolin scheme re- cently. It was announced that €6.04 million has been made available for the Doolin scheme. However, it didn’t mention that there was a fund- ing deficit of €5.388 million for this project. This would have to be made up by the local people.”

A DRIVE to raise more _ than €200,000 for the Quin school field fund is to move to a new level, with the launch of a major initiative.

The Scoil na Mainistreach school development committee has _ pur- chased a field, at a cost of £100,000. It will cost another €100,000 to de- velop the pitch and the local commu- nity will have to foot the majority of

the bill.

While half of the total money nec- essary has already been raised, the remaining €100,000 still have to be collected. With this in mind, the committee will hold a *Who wants to be a Thousandaire’ in The Clare Inn hotel on April 18 next.

At a meeting last week, it was de- cided that parents on the committee would seek sponsorship, along with selling tickets for the event, at a cost

of €15 each.

A similar fundraiser raised up to €50,000 last year in Sixmilebridge. Scou na Mainistreach principal Ann Fitzpatrick is optimistic that this event will match that and is appeal- ing to everyone to contribute.

“There has been tremendous sup- port for the development and it will be a great resource for the commu- nity,” said Ms Fitzpatrick.

It is hoped that the field will be

ready for use next September and will be open to the community, along with the school.

“We will be allowing as much ac- cess as possible to the community, controlled access,” she said.

“Tt will be the only field of its type in the village. It is a resource for the community, as well as the school,” said the principal.

The pitch development is part of a three-year plan, launched in 2006.

THE HSE has come under attack for its handling of the money secured from the sale of Our Lady’s Hospi- tal, as the mental health service in the county continues to be under- funded.

The Irish Psychiatric Associa- tion this week criticized the way the health authorities disposed of property assets associated with Irish mental hospitals.

The Clare Mental Health Services was one of the authorities stripped

of their assets according to the IPA, when 40 acres of Our Lady’s Hos- pital site was sold to Clare County Council and Shannon Development Authority for €2.6 million.

A report from the association points to widespread ‘asset-stripping’ of buildings and land. It stated lands linked to psychiatric facilities were sold or given away at significant un- der-valuations and any financial real- isation was not paid into the mental health service.

The IPA made the accusations on the second anniversary of the pub-

lication of the Government’s mental health policy, ‘A Vision for Change’. The policy committed the Govern- ment to spending €25 million extra a year on mental health services. The Irish Mental Health Coalition (IMHC) said almost half the budget allocated to the HSE in 2006 and 2007 to implement this policy had been spent on deficits in other areas. According to information received by the IMSC under FOI, just over half (57 per cent) of the 2006 funding of the mental health plan was spent, with only 40 per cent of the budget

spent in 2007.

The HSE said the balance of the funding from these years was time- delayed to address core deficits in existing mental health services.

In a statement, the HSE said it ac- cepted all the recommendations of ‘A Vision for Change’ and is work- ing to ensure that everybody has easy access to high quality mental health care and services.

“Such fundamental changes will inevitably take time to implement, but to date steady progress has been made,’ the spokesperson said.

Priorities outlined for 2008 and 2009 included the provision of eight additional consultant child psychia- try teams, together with an increase in the inpatient bed capacity from 12 to 30 by the end of 2008.

“The Waiting List report on Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services completed in 2007 will be utilised to develop a number of in- centives to address waiting lists,” it Cr HOR

Clare and the mid-west region cur- rently have no adolescent psychia- eho

DIFFERENT year, different Clon- lara performance but the same Jim Gully. As ever, the Clonlara manager was his animated self on the sideline as he watched his charges take on Galway side Tommy Larkins. Yet for the first time since possibly the semi- final against Killanena in 2006, his post match mood was one of under- standable disappointment yet im- mense pride in his players.

“We’re definitely disappointed by not winning it but I don’t think we can have any excuses. I think the bet- ter team won, I don’t have have quar- rels about that. I thought even in the first half we were very lucky to be six points apiece at half time. They had all the hurling done and I even said to the boys at half time that I thought the wind was going to suit them play- ing into it in the second half because it would have stopped the balls from going wide.

“In fact they killed the game well by slowing it down and we never got to the pace of it. I never thought we were in a comfortable position where we were going to drive on. Maybe the time we got the goal that was dis- allowed, we might have drove on af- ter that but I think our heads dropped and they definitely got a wind from it.”

Clonlara never really reached the lofty heights of previous games. The spark that ignited inspirational per- formances against Killanena, Car- rgitwohill and Lorrha just wasn’t there and even though the supporters stayed on to the bitter end awaiting another comeback, it never really materialised.

“I thought with ten minutes to go that it was going to take an unmerci-

ful effort to get out of it because we weren’t creating chances which was different for us. In past games, we al- ways had a forward running through and maybe they would get the ball to him but that wasn’t happening to- day. Apart from that one chance that was disallowed, I don’t think we ever threatened their goalkeeper and that was worrying me.”

The loss of Donal Madden was cer- tainly a factor on Sunday. Having got

seven points in their last outing in the Munster Final against Dromin-Ath- lacca, his influence from both open play and frees was crucial to Clon- lara all year but while Gully agreed, he wasn’t making any excuses.

“We knew we were coming in here under fierce pressure without Donal Madden but they were missing one or two of their fellas as well. I think probably the experience of being there two years ago, they knew how

to kill the game. Tommy Larkins played like a senior team today, we probably didn’t and we were just that little bit more naive.”

It may be the end of the road for their All-Ireland challenge this year but with a senior championship to look forward to, Gully now feels his side can make an impact at the highest level of Clare hurling, seeing last year’s successes as a huge learn- ing curve for his players for the year

ahead.

“We are definitely looking forward to playing senior. As I said to the lads inside, from a management point of view, I would gladly swap playing in the All-Ireland final on Saturday week to be in the county final next September. I would gladly swap it all but from the players point of view, from the day you are born all you ever want to do is play in Croke Park. That was their chance and that’s why I feel so sorry for them today but we ll definitely be looking at giving the Clare senior championship aright good go this year. We have a good, lively team and they will learn from today and from what happened last year. I think we proved today that we are no flash in the pan either. I mean we put it up to Tommy Larkins who were there two years ago and it came down to a puck of a ball really. We can play better than we did today, that would be my reading of it.

“But It has been a real rollercoast- er and I am just delighted to have played a small part in it and I’m sure I speak for Niall (Hogan) and Kieran (Whelan) as well. It 1s just a pleasure to work with those lads and It been a fantastic year and hopefully now this year we can drive on, make it count and be up there with the best of them.”

Accepting second best is not in Jim Gully’s vocabulary. The rest of the county beware.

AFTER a two year delay, plans by An Post to move mail sorting and de- livery services from two Clare post offices to Shannon are now likely to go ahead in March.

Staff at the offices in Sixmilebri- dge and Newmarket-on-Fergus have been in dispute with the company since it announced its intention to permanently redeploy them to Shan-

non.They have now been advised by their union to accept recommenda- tions issued by the Labour Relations Commission following conciliation Fe EM Wioled ©

While further talks are scheduled to take place between the Communi- cations Workers Union and An Post, it is expected the sorting and deliv- ery services at Sixmilebridge and Newmarket-on-Fergus will move to Shannon from early March. It is

understood a number of outstanding issues in relation to the move will be discussed at that meeting.

At present, letter and parcel post for Newmarket and Sixmilebridge is sorted on site at the respective post offices. Ten delivery staff are employed between the two offices and moving them to Shannon would see a doubling of staff at that sort- ing centre. It is also understood that some redevelopment of the facility at

Shannon will have to be undertaken. Three separate dates were set in 2006 for the relocation of services, however the move did not go ahead because the matter was in dispute. Following talks at the LRC on Tuesday, recommendations were is- sued to both sides for consideration. Staff from Newmarket-on-Fergus and Sixmilebridge met with their union representatives in Ennis last Thursday night to discuss the LRC

document. Although the details of the arrangement have not been made public by either side, staff at the meeting were advised by the CWU to accept the LRC recommendation.

Commenting on the LRC talks, a spokesman for An Post would only say, “We went to the LRC last Tues- day for conciliation talks and after- wards recommendations were 1s- sued. Both sides are now considering those recommendations.”

NO CONSULTANTS have yet been appointed to oversee the develop- ment of a three storey, 45,000 sq foot library building and arts centre in the Post Office Field, Ennis.

Last November the government gave the go-ahead to Clare County Council to appoint a project design team. Town Engineer Tom Tiernan said an extensive consultation proc- ess was underway and final approval had yet to be given.

“It is a long procedure and there haven’t been any appointments yet,’ he said. “It can be a complicated process. Certainly it’s not what it used to be, in terms of appointing a

ENNIS Chamber is offering a new translation service for local busi- nesses. The service, facilitated by Chambers Ireland, is in response to an increased demand for dependable translation services by Irish firms, who continue to employ large num- bers of foreign nationals, and are do- ing business and setting up offices overseas more than ever before. Provided by Clare-based com- pany e-lIeams, Chamber Transla- tion Services offers multi-lingual translation services and localisation solutions for every business transla- tion requirement. This includes, for

team for a project. There are a lot of procedures to go through.”

When the Post Office Field was identified in November 2006 as the favoured site for a new library, Ennis Town Council approved a request to apply for funding from the Depart- ment of the Environment and An Comhairle Leabhrlanna.

However, Mr Tiernan said, “As far as I am aware, no specific funding has been approved for the project.”

He added that any development on the field would not cause impact on flooding in the town.

“It accommodates flood storage when there are prolonged periods of high rainfall, but it is not critical as a flood plain. It is not critical in terms

example, the translation of website content, marketing materials, pres- entations and contracts.

It offers clients access to a global team of localisation experts, who will assist businesses in successfully communicating with target audienc- es in their native language(s).

Ennis Chamber CEO Rita MclIner- ney commented, “Chamber Transla- tion Services offer the flexibility to enable businesses to cost-effectively communicate with their international target market, be it customers, sup- pliers or employees. To successfully deliver their message on a global

of flood management for Ennis.

“Certainly, on the section of the field where the new library is pro- posed, any development there would not have any impact on flooding.”

The proposed state-of-the-art de- velopment will incorporate a public library, headquarters, local studies centre, performance arena, commu- nity meeting facilities and a range of ancillary exhibition areas for Clare County Library and the Clare Arts Office.

The Post Office Field is currently zoned as amenity, so any develop- ment would constitute a material contravention to the Ennis and Envi- rons Development Plan and require the council to adopt a variation to

scale, businesses must consider the context, channel and culture, not just the multilingual translation.”

Chamber President Michael Evans welcomed the service, saying, “The Irish workforce is increasingly di- verse, making this new service very opportune. I believe that results from a recent Labour Force Survey by Chambers Ireland shows that nearly one fifth of employees in Ireland are foreign nationals. Therefore it is im- portant that employers are able to provide documents, such as Health & Safety and contracts, in a multi- tude of languages.”

derchamo)e-n0e

Members of the Ennis arts commu- nity have questioned the merit of the project, given that Ennis already has two major arts and cultural venues in Glor and the recently redeveloped Cois na hAbhna.

Library and council officials say the need exists for a new library in Ennis and re-development of the existing De Valera Library site is unfeasible.

Head of the Clare Regional Game Council, Jimmy Allured opposes the development. “Where will the water go if they do build there?” he asked.

“The water is right up the wall. If they block off that corner, the water will flood onto the corner of Parnell Street.”

eleams Director, Martina Minogue, said she was delighted that her com- pany was Selected to work with Chambers Ireland to provide this translation service.

“As a small, indigenous business ourselves, we understand the con- text in which Chamber members are operating, and feel we can therefore serve their needs better than an over- seas supplier,” she said.

“We are excited about this opportu- nity and confident that our extensive range of languages, coupled with our track record, will not disappoint,” she concluded.

MAJOR improvements are needed to the diets of young people in Ire- land according to an extensive scien- tific study on teens’ diet, which was presented at a RELAY-organised conference in Dublin last week.

The study, which benchmarks di- etary intakes of a nationally repre- sentative sample of Irish teenagers, was carried out by the Irish Univer- sities Nutrition Alliance (IUNA) at UCD and UCC and funded by the Department of Agriculture, Fisher- ies and Food under the Food Insti- tutional Research Measure (FIRM), and co-funded by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI).

The study is described as a valuable

tool for allowing farmers and food producers to tailor product develop- ment based on more healthy lines.

“This is the first comprehensive scientific evaluation of dietary intake in teenagers in Ireland and provides direction for the dietary strategies that need to be established to prevent obesity in Irish teenagers,” said Min- ister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Mary Coughlan.

“Funding had been awarded under FIRM for a group of third level re- search projects on developing breads and ready meals with a reduced salt content, and I welcome industry co- operation with this work.”

Stressing the contribution of well focused research to policy making, the Minister said that the earlier Sci-

entific study on children’s diet had provided an evidence base to support the decision to launch the National ‘Food Dude’ programme to encour- age increased consumption of fruit and vegetables by primary school- children, which was run in over 300 primary schools in 2006, and the review and re-launch of the school milk scheme to include a wider range of dairy products.

The study on teens’ diet surveyed 450 teenagers aged 13-17 from sec- ondary schools throughout Ireland during 2005 and 2006, and was car- ried out by researchers in UCD and UCC.

In addition to diet, the study in- cludes direct body measurements on each teenager and provides accurate

data on the extent to which the obes- ity crisis is affecting Irish teenagers. It also included essential information on lifestyle, including physical activ- ity, for both the teenagers and their parents.

“We need clear guidelines for healthy eating for teens – guidelines that focus on appropriate portion siz- es, lower consumption of fat, salt and sugared drinks, and higher intake of vegetables and fruit, fibre, vitamins and minerals,” said Professor Albert Flynn, Department of Food & Nutri- tional Science, UCC.

“The pyramid model used in Ire- land to guide healthy eating, has been completely revised in the US to tackle obesity, and similar revisions need to take place here.”

LAST YEAR, Clare travelled to Dr Cullen Park in the league opener, played well. When Carlow moved through the gears in the second-half, Clare responded and came home e100 MAA n OE

It was Clare’s highlight of the year

and already, even without the league beginning, they’ve eclipsed last year’s achievements.

On Sunday, Carlow come to Ennis in the reverse fixture and Clare will expect a similar performance and re- sult to that of 2007. Crucially, they will also expect and should continue their winning habit throughout the

league.

Despite Carlow’s draw with Dublin in the O’Byrne Cup and despite Paul Bealin’s introduction and a fresh at- titude in ther panel, Clare won’t have any serious reservations about the Carlow challenge. Dublin took them down at the weekend in the O’ Byrne Cup replay with a weak side and had

eight points to spare in the process.

The starting 15 against Carlow will hold the most interest from a Clare perspective. The back four should remain the same from the McGrath Cup final and Niall Considine — who wasn’t available for selection on Sun- day — should come in at wing-back, possibly at the expense of Jimmy yeah

Gordon Kelly has done enough at centre-back to keep the jersey. He’s been one of the county’s most con- sistent players over the past two years and he provides the spine Frank Do- herty needs.

During the McGrath Cup campaign, Clare have tried to coax a handful of players back onto the panel. So far, they haven’t budged but a slice of success in January will provide more bargaining power.

Garry Brennan will push for se- lection on Sunday, but the feeling is that Clare will stay with the midfield of Darragh Kelly and Frank O’Dea — though O’Dea picked up a knock to the back against Limerick.

Clare need Brennan and one other player pushing for a second midfield spot while Brennan also provides an option closer to goal. David Russell, of course, would provide the pres- ence needed in the middle but he was used effectively against Limerick — in his first start of the year — as, es- sentially, a third midfielder. Joe Hay- es could have used him more from his kickouts and whenever he did, particularly late on, Russell revelled. Though he’s been with the panel for less than a month, he already looks fit and sharp.

If Clare need some competition for

midfield places, then they also need two more forwards of inter-county standard. Michael O’Shea is an ob- vious starter on the 40 and Stephen Hickey has held his place throughout the McGrath Cup.

David ‘Tubridy has one corner locked up and Rory Donnelly might get the other. If not, Hickey could move to the corner, opening other options out the field.

The real decision comes at full-for- ward. Before Sunday, the feeling here is that Timmy Ryan was ahead in Clare’s pecking order but once more, Colm Dillon came on and made an immediate impact.

While both provide obvious pres- ence and height — thus increasing depth and penetration — they each bring different qualities to the table. Dillon is arguably better in the air and has a strong relationship with Tubridy. Ryan is the more rounded footballer but still lacks match sharp- ness. It’s a close call, but Ryan will Start.

Sean Collins, Keith Whelan, Fintan Conway, the Larkins and John Hayes will also have contributions to make and Doherty hasn’t been afraid to make fast personnel decisions during elses. 00a len

It’s a dog-eared cliché to state that Clare must win their home games, but a five from five start to the season is within Clare’s grasp.

CLARE’S county manager has ad- mitted that Clare County Council will “have to up our game consider- ably” if it 1s to reach the targets set for it in the first report on the Provi- sion and Quality of Drinking Water in Ireland, 2006 – 2007.

Alec Fleming said that while the re- port was favourable in many respects the council has a lot of improvement works to carry out.

He said that the three areas re- quiring improvement included the upgrading of the county’s treatment plants, the operation and mainte- nance of the water schemes and the

monitoring of the water sources.

All of this will require more staff and money; money the manager said he does not have.

Clare County Council, like other local authorities, no longer receive 100 per cent of the capital fund- ing required for such projects. This means that the council must find €80 million from its own coffers.

While such money is collectable through levies, the county manager fears that such funding will be dif- ficult to find.

“IT welcome the report. It brings out issues. They are serious issues and they have to be addressed urgently and quickly,” he said.

Published by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the report gives an overall favourable report to the drinking water in Clare, while highlighting a few serious concerns.

The EPA was particularly con- cerned with the low level of compli- ance with the trihalomethanes stand- ard at 88 per cent.

Trihalomethanes remains on the surface of the water when it is treat- ed only with disinfection rather than UI Kouce

Supplies in Ennis, Ennistymon, West Clare New and West Clare Old reported concentrations that were unacceptably high.

The standards for trihalomethanes

are tightening later this year, making this a number one concern.

Compliance with the indicator par- amedic values was above the nation- al average in water supplies in Clare, but there was a notable improvement required in the iron concentration in the water.

Water supplies in Clare were fully compliant with 23 of the 26 chemi- cal standards, with just one failure to meet fluoride standard and two fail- ures to meet lead standards recorded. Compliance with water regulations for the county were above national average at 98.2 per cent although concerns were expressed about the Ennis town supply.

For the report the EPA analysed 529 check and 54 audit samples dur- ihnteaA 0) Oley

Although private group’ water schemes in Clare were generally of a higher quality than those in the ma- jority of local authorities, the report found that there was still a number of quality deficient schemes dur- ing 2006 whether three or the 11 schemes monitored contaminated. Two of these were also contaminated during 2005. Compliance with the coliform bacteria parametric value in private group water schemes re- mained problematic and dropped from 63 per cent compliance in 2005 to 58 per cent in 2006.