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PRIMARY school children from all over north Clare and south Galway are returning to school this month with a new and exciting subject light- ing up the curriculum. Hundreds of children from nine schools through- out the region are getting their teeth into anew course which teaches them all about the landscape, ecology and rich history of the Burren.

The Eco-Beo – My Burren Herit- age education programme, which is being delivered by Burrenbeo, with Support from the Burren Connect Project, will take place between Jan- uary and June of this year.

Specially trained experts will offer children the chance to explore the animals, plants, monuments, land- scape and culture of the Burren in a fun and friendly classroom atmos-

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The Eco-Beo concept was original- ly developed by Burrenbeo, which rolled out the programme to six Bur- ren schools in 2004.

‘“Burrenbeo has worked for the last five years to support the development of new education models that will help people understand how impor- tant it is to conserve what’s left of Ireland’s special places like the Bur- ren,’ said Ann O’Connor of Burren- beo.

‘“Eco-Beo is a unique course be- cause it immerses children in their local heritage over a period of months, adopts new technologies and top educators to do so.”

Course tutors, including Gordan D’arcy, Zena Hoctor and Brendan Dunford, all of whom are experts in their individual areas, will deliver the modules.

Students will also be taken on Bur- ren field trips, where they will have the opportunity to explore the region first hand and put their new-found knowledge to the test. As well as ex- citing field trips and class lectures, Burrenbeo utilises new technology and interactivity as a basis for effec- tive education.

“We hope to find new ways to roll out virtual classrooms to support learners and encourage users to learn through participation and experi- mentation. In a way it’s like subvert- ing the screen that so dominates chil- dren’s lives today,” continued Ann.

‘We hope that through our work lo- cal children will take ownership of their heritage and reconnect with na- ture and the Burren – a place that has to be Ireland’s most perfect learning STOMANRO ev ee tole

Primary school children from Kin-

vara, Kilnaboy, New Quay, Corofin, Kilfenora, Doorus, Kilshanny, Tub- ber and Boston will all take part in this years programme while Bur- renbeo and the Burren Connect Project are actively seeking funding to extend the course to other Burren schools in 2008 and 2009.

To learn more about this and the other work of Burrenbeo check out Wwww.burrenbeo.com, e-mail info@burrenbeo.com or contact the Burren Connect programme Carol Gleeson at cgleeson@burren.ie or 065 7072296.

THE County Coroner has described as a “great pity” a fishing trip by a eroup of friends that ended with the death of a Polish man.

Isobel O’Dea was speaking at the inquest into the death of Dariucz Dzikowski. Mr Dzikowski died af- ter he was swept from rocks on the coastline at Kilkee on October 28, 2007.

Ms O’Dea said weather conditions on the day were particularly bad. She said, “My recollection of the day is that it was a pretty miserable one. It was a great pity that people went fishing. I would like to pay tribute to the rescue services who went out in those conditions.”

Ms O’Dea returned a verdict of death by drowning as result of fish- ing off the rocks near Kilkee.

In giving her decision, Ms O’Dea

said, “I am aware that there is a lack of witnesses in the court, but I am satisfied there is no foul play.”

No members of Mr Dzikowski’s family or any of the witnesses present at the time of the accident were present in the Coroner’s Court in Ennis last Wednesday.

Ms O’Dea said she was aware there had been difficulty contacting wit- nesses and that the Polish embassy was anxious to get a death certificate. She said she would be writing to the Polish embassy to appraise them of the situation.

Inspector John Galvin read to the court the deposition of the deceased’s brother-in-law, Wojech Wilk. He described how Mr Dzikowski was swept into the sea. “It was a Sunday afternoon and we went fishing down past the Pollock holes in Kilkee. I was with Dariucz and our friends, Jan Krsten and Adam Kurzalkowsk1.

At about 1.30pm, a wave hit Dariucz and brought him into the sea. Adam threw him a lifejacket but we couldn’t see him.”

Tony O’Mahony of the Shannon Helicopter Rescue Service told the court, “We located the body within 10 minutes and we administered CPR immediately.”

Garda John Reidy told the court that at 1.40pm on the day of the in- cident he had received a report that a person had fallen into the sea near Kilkee golf club.

‘I searched the area and could not see anyone or find anyone who could help. I realised that the accident had occurred on the cliffs at the far side. I resumed the search there.”

Mr Dzikowski was airlifted to En- nis and was pronounced dead at En- nis General Hospital. Inspector John Galvin extended his sympathy to the family and friends of Mr Dzikowsk1.

A GALWAY man has appeared in court, charged with dangerous driv- ing causing the death of Ennis busi- nessman Howard Flannery last year.

Michael Dillon (37) from Puirin, Inverin, County Galway, appeared before Ennis District Court on Fri- day in connection with a road acci- dent at Ballysallagh West, Newmar- ket-on-Fergus, on June 3, 2007.

Mr Flannery (39), of Cahercalla Road, Ennis, died after he was struck by a vehicle while he was cycling along the Newmarket-on-Fergus

bypass near Carrigoran on the after- noon of Sunday, June 3, last year.

Mr Flannery, who was in training for a triathlon due to take place later that month, had been cycling with a companion on the hard shoulder When the collision took place. Mr Flannery died at the scene while his friend escaped injury.

Mr Flannery was well known in business and sporting circles and was a former boxing champion. He had run several marathons and in 2005 established The Clare Crusad- ers charity which has raised over €150,000 for cerebral palsy since its

inception.

In court on Friday, solicitor for the accused Vincent Shields applied for free legal aid for his client. He said Mr Dillon was not working at Kole

Judge Joseph Mangan granted the application approving Mr Shields as solicitor as well as a junior and sen- OMe LUN To) B

Judge Mangan sent the accused forward for trial to the next sitting of Ennis Circuit Court. Mr Dillon was released on his own bail of €2,000.

GORT is slowly but surely working its way to the top of Ireland’s festival calendar, following the announce- ment last week that the Life Festival will return to the town this year.

Taking up residence in Lough Cutra Castle from July 4 to 6, it’s expected to attract thousands of music lovers and revellers to the area.

Over the last two years the Life Fes- tival has built up a loyal and growing following. Organisers have focussed

on quality over quantity, with a very limited number of tickets on sale and a luxurious festival experience guar- anteed.

Marketing itself as an alternative to the major festivals, Life fills its stages with quality electronic and tradition- al acts: everything from European psytrance, reggae and world music to minimal techno, folk and trad.

This year the scope of festivities has expanded even further with more non-musical features, such as artistic and culture events. The line-up for

2008 is as yet unknown but last year’s performers included Phil Hartnoll from Orbital and Ronan O’Snodaigh from Kila. A number of high-profile acts are expected to be announced over the coming months.

Organisers are also offering local acts the chance to gain a place on the bill and are calling on artists, bands, DJs, fire performers, jugglers, stilt walkers, theatre performers and oth- er colourful people to put themselves forward. Application forms will be available from early next month.

A limited amount of discount tick- ets are currently available on the fes- tival website, www.life-festival.com. Early bird revellers can purchase special Trusting Life Tickets from €75 plus booking fees and VAT.

These are limited and available on a first come, first served basis. The remainder of the tickets will be re- leased on a staggered basis through- out spring. Allocations of full three-day tickets will be released on February | (€90), March 1 (€110) and May | (€130).

ese terday, a spokesman from the De- partment of the Environment said that applications for one-off houses would not be affected.

‘The situation will be the same in Clare as it is in south Galway; the presence of Hen Harriers and the position of a site in the Special Area of Conservation will not be a factor

in the granting of planning permis- sion for one-off housing,” said the spokesman.

These commitments leaves too much ‘wiggle room’ for planners, ac- cording to Clare IFA president Sea-

mus Murphy. “There are real fears in the area. Farmers need to be able to build in their own areas. It’s the Irish way of life. Why should we put the welfare of Hen Harriers ahead of the welfare of farm- ers,’ he said. “We would like to remind all farmers that they can still object to this classification until February 8.”

As much as 35 per cent of Ireland’s Hen Harrier population – some 40 pairs of birds – is believed to live in the area between Clare and Galway.

Last year, Minister Gormley des- ignated some 61,000 hectares in the Slieve Aughty Mountains in south Galway and north Clare as a Special Protection Area for the preservation of the rare bird.

The Hen Harrier is facing extinc- tion in Ireland and the UK with only 20 currently in existence in England.

A MAN caught urinating in a door- way in Ennis told gardai his name was ‘Baa Baa Black Sheep’ follow- ing his arrest, a court has heard.

Aidan O’Connell (24) of Consid- ine Road, Cloughleigh, Ennis was arrested at 12.l5am on January 23 last, after a Garda patrol observed him urinating in a doorway in Ennis town centre.

Garda Ian Kenefick told Ennis Dis- trict Court that the accused was very intoxicated and had to be assisted by gardai. He was taken to Ennis Garda Station where he was asked for his name. Garda Kenefick said after the

third time of asking, the accused re- plied, “Baa Baa Black Sheep”.

Gardai later established the man’s identity after finding a credit union card in his pocket.

Mr O’Connell is charged with be- ing intoxicated in public and with failing or refusing to give his name and address when asked.

Defending solicitor Tara Godfrey said her client had no memory of the incident and wanted to apologise to gardai. Ms Godfrey said her client was “a young man who has lost his way and was in a “rut.”

Judge Joseph Mangan adjourned the matter, for preparation of a pro- bation report.

SUSI SeRCibeCoKone chm PIMs INN Oats people of rural Clare are viewed by outsiders forms the subject of a new installation which opened last week at the X-PO project in Kilnaboy.

Mr and Mrs Krab’s Utopia is a vid- eo-based installation by east Clare artist Amanda Dunsmore, which ex- plores the opinions of a Dutch cou- ple who have made rural Clare their home.

The installation came about as part of Clare County Council’s Ground Up Project, in which Dunsmore con- ducted a series of interviews with people who have moved into the ru-

ral areas of the county.

“Mr and Mrs Krab were perfect for this project, they are such open and endearing people. They have led an interesting life themselves before they got to Clare and they are very straight with their opinions, but also quite humorous,” said Amanda.

“They had had a very tough time working in Holland. Mr Krab had been suffering from depression. But they came on holiday to Clare and suddenly the depression lifted. After that holiday it became their dream to come and live in Ireland.

“They also have a unique view of how rural Ireland has changed over the last number of years: from the

amount of time that people have to the changes that have come around with drugs in rural Ireland.”

Mr and Mrs Krab’s Utopia is the latest exhibition to take up residency as part of the X-PO Project in the old Kilnaboy post office. The project, which is the brainchild of local artist Deirdre O’Mahony, is attempting to reactivate and record the community interaction that once formed around local post offices.

“It is always interesting to get an outsiders perspective of ourselves,” continued Amanda. “As part of this installation I recreated the post of- fice counter from three of the origi- nal drawers.

“The video piece is being shown on a very small monitor in the top drawer. All the technology is hidden, so when you walk in you hear the sound and you have to go over to the counter, open the drawer and watch the video.”

Meanwhile, Local Ground, an exhi- bition by Deirdre O’Mahony, is cur- rently running in the Siamsa Tire in Kerry. In this exhibition O’ Mahony examines the reality of rural life in the light of social and ecological changes in the west of Ireland.

X-PO is open from 2-5pm daily and is funded by the Arts Council, an Chomhairle Ealaionn and Super- Valu.

COUNTY councillors last night voted to accept the budget for the authority for 2008, but struck out controversial plans to introduce re- cycling charges at centres and also voted to reduce certain water meter- ing charges.

Earlier members of Clare County Council were told that while Clare’s TDs support their calls for more funding for the local authority, noth- ing could be done until the members passed the budget they have.

Minister Tony Kileen (FF), Deputy Pat Breen (FG) and a representative of Fianna Fail’s Deputy Timmy Do- ley attended the third meeting which had been convened to try to reach agreement on the budget proposals drawn up for 2008.

Members had invited the deputies to air their concerns about short- falls in the council’s funding which had resulted in proposals to impose charges on recycling centres, among other measures.

At an earlier meeting, Mayor Pa- tricia McCarthy (Ind) issued a stern

warning that unless the councillors voted to approve the budget, the local authority would have to disband.

After hearing the members express their concerns about shortfalls in the amount of money allocated from central Government, Minister Kileen told the meeting that he understood their frustration but under law, he and the other elected TDs could do nothing to help until after the budget has been approved.

At an earlier meeting, Mayor Patri- cia McCarthy said that she had had a number of meetings with the minister

for local government, facilitated by Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) and while he gave the issues a hearing, he also could do nothing until the procedure of voting to adopt the current budget was completed.

Cllr Pascal Fitzgerald (Lab) said there should be money made available to fast-track the northern relief route while Cllr Madeleine Taylor-Quinn (FG) said that “all of the expenditure on roads seems to be concentrated on Shannon and Ennis and it seems there are no proposals for any major roads schemes in the west.”

A 29-year-old man charged in con- nection with an alleged arson attack at a house in Ennis last year has been remanded on continuing bail.

Stephen McGuire with an address at Pine Grove, Ennis, faces one count of arson arising out of an incident on October 18 last.

In court last Friday, Inspector Tom Kennedy informed Judge Joseph Mangan that a file on the matter was still with the Director of Public Pros- ecutions and that the State was seek- ing a further adjournment.

Solicitor for the accused Tara God- frey applied to the court to have the matter marked “peremptory against

the State” if the book of evidence was not available at the next hear- ing. This means that the judge could strike out the charge if the State fails to lodge the book of evidence by that CF Ken

Ms Godfrey asked the court to be mindful that her client had already appeared in court seven times in re- FIR (oye com satom eer litem

Inspector Kennedy said gardai were still awaiting forensic reports and results of tests carried out at the scene and said such reports could take time to be completed.

Judge Joseph Mangan adjourned it until March and said he would mark the matter peremptory against the SIF Kee

WHAT started as an archaeology weekend back in 1987 has trans- formed into one of the cultural and social highlights of the year in north OE

As the Burren Spring Conference prepares to celebrate its 21st birthday this weekend, regular attendees are marking the occasion by remember- ing the origins of the event.

The festivals began as informal gatherings organised by the late Michael Green in Hylands Hotel, Ballyvaughan in the early 1980s. It wasn’t until 1987 that Mr Green, along with George Cunningham, hosted the first formal Burren Spring Soc

“We thought it would be a good idea to organise the conference in Febru- ary, at a time when there wouldn’t be that many tourists around,” said founder George Cunningham.

“We had the best of Irish scholar- ship, principally on topics related to the Burren. We devised a structure of lectures on the Friday, and had the dawn walk on the Saturday morning before breakfast, then lectures and Jno Ce IO

“They were very pleasant occa- sions, and we had a lot of repeat visi- tors. They were tremendous events.”

With the foundation of the Burren College of Art, the conference grew and moved from Hylands to the lec- ture halls of the college and the new- ly restored Newtown Castle.

“Following Michael’s death there was a change of emphasis,’ contin- ued Mr Cunningham. “For the last number of year there has been a dif- ferent convener each year, and a cen- tral topic.

“It has become less archaeologi- cal and historic and more socially based. It has a much broader aspect to it now.

“The whole Burren itself is attrac- tive at any time, but particularly so in the beginning of February. That time of the year gives a different perspec- tive of the Burren.

“Most of the people who came to the conference would have been peo- ple who were deeply interested in the Burren and wanted to explore it in a CUES KoKS LMNs: h Ae

This year’s conference, which is convened by Ann Byrne from NUI Galway, focuses on the idea of sto- ries and the ways in which they are passed on and retold.

The conference, entitled ‘°Narra- tives of People and Place: Burren Stories, Told and Untold’, takes place this weekend.

Expert speakers include Daithi O hOgain of the Department of Irish Folklore in UCD, writers Ré O Laighleis and Kieran Sheedy, Celtic Scholar Sean O Duinin, Lelia Doolin and Donnachada O’Corrain.