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CLARE farmer and chairperson of ICMSA’s Beef and Cattle Com- mittee Martin McMahon has called for streamlining of the Suckler Cow SYo tesa elon

Speaking following a meeting with senior officials of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Food on the new Suckler Cow Welfare Scheme, he said he welcomes the introduc- tion of the scheme but pointed out that a number of small amendments to the detailed rules would make the scheme more attractive to farmers.

“ICMSA believes that some of the recording deadlines set down by the department are excessive and unnec- essary and should be amended. For example, each calf born will neces- sitate a farmer having to notify the

department on five separate occa- sions regarding certain events based on strict deadlines. It is possible and sensible to greatly streamline that level of recording and still meet the department’s objectives,” he said.

‘For example, instead of writing to the department on the date the ani- mal was disbudded, that information should be included in the calf regis- tration form, thus eliminating at least one set of unnecessary paperwork. Excessive form-filling has become the bane of many a farmer’s exist- ence and we need a conscious effort to avoid pointless replication.”

In addition, the ICMSA is propos- ing that calves born after September 1, 2007 should be eligible for this scheme while the department has confirmed that the scheme is open to all farmers irrespective of whether

they were in suckler farming in the past or not.

“The scheme is a welcome develop- ment for the suckler herd but we will require more initiatives if we are to maintain a sustainable suckler cow herd in Ireland,” said McMahon.

Meanwhile, the ICMSA has also said compensation for animals killed by diseases is out of line with current market realities.

Given the recent rise in livestock value, the levels of compensation available under the Live Valuation Scheme and associated TB/Brucel- losis Schemes are now out of line with actual losses.

“As every farmer will know, the val- ue of dairy stock has increased con- siderably this year and ICMSA be- lieves that the guideline figures used by the Department of Agriculture,

Fisheries & Food for TB/Brucellosis valuations have not kept pace,” said Dominic Cronin, chairperson of [C- MSA’s Dairy Committee.

‘For example, the guideline figures for first and second lactation cows have not increased at all for certain categories since last April, while the most a category has increased is by €200.

“That does not at all reflect the re- ality on the ground, where the prices paid by farmers have increased by substantially more and ICMSA is now calling on the department to im- mediately revise their guideline pric- es upwards to reflect the true value of dairy stock at this time.”

GARDENING the way our grand- parents might have done it is making a comeback.

A community garden in east Clare is providing inspiration for many local people who had never turned their hand to growing their own fruit and vegetables before.

Brendan Sanders is part of the esroup which set up the community garden two years ago and now that it has been so successful, he hopes to see a project on a larger scale get off the ground with a community allot- ment of a few acres.

The garden became possible thanks to the generosity of a local woman, Mary Henchy, who owned one eight of an acre of land behind Brian and Joe’s Café in Scarif.

She wanted to see some use made

of it rather than simply keeping the grass and weeds under control and she offered it to the intrepid garden- ing group.

‘Four people got together initially to set up the garden project,’ said Brendan. “It’s a place where people can come and work in the garden or learn about growing plants and veg- etables or just come and sit.”

Local people drop in from time to time to get advice on growing or to see what is being done in the garden and some come to help.

It is also used by clients of the Brother’s of Charity.

The gardeners also cultivate me- dicinal and culinary herbs and trees, making it a woodland garden.

One day a week, it’s the setting for a sculpture workshop.

“We had two local girls in their twenties drop in last week. They

were very interested in learning how to grow their own food and they’ve agreed to come and work with us. We also get older people coming in and they tell us how there was always a bit of land on their parent’s farms where vegetables and fruit were grown for the house,” said Brendan.

Parents often call at weekends with their children to show them around and school groups come in from time to time.

The Alpha Project, an alternative second-level education project, has a module on gardening on it’s curricu- lum and the youngsters involved do the module in the garden.

“It’s a way of bringing different sections of the community together, doing something which 1s sustain- able and productive,” said Brendan.

Recently, a community composting facility has been started in the gar-

den with funding from Agenda 21 for a compost bin and two wormer- ies. Nearby households were given plastic composting buckets and they bring their compostable waste which will be put to use as garden fertiliser once it has been broken down.

“We’re hoping in the future that this idea will expand and that we will be able to get a larger piece of land for people to work as a community allot- ment, where crops could be grown on a small scale and more people would get involved,’ said Brendan.

THE Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Mary Cough- lan, has urged all Clare farmers who want to join REPS for the first time in 2008 to have their plans properly prepared before the 2008 closing date for the Single Payment Scheme application.

This is because a change in EU rules means that, from next year, applications for agri-environment payments like REPS must be made before the Single Payment applica- tion deadline.

Farmers starting REPS 4 contracts

this year are not affected by the new requirement. “In practice, the new rules from 2008 mean that if you are a first-time REPS applicant, you must submit a REPS 4 plan before the Sin- gle Payment application deadline if you are to receive your REPS pay- ment in the calendar year,’ Minister Coughlan said.

“If your REPS 4 plan is received after the 2008 Single Payment ap- plication deadline, we can start your REPS contract the following month but we can’t pay you until you have made a payment application in the following year.

“It will only affect you in your first

year in REPS. The first payment will be backdated to the start of your contract and your other payments will go out linked to your REPS an- niversary as they have always done in the past.”

The minister stressed that the great majority of farmers who are already in REPS will be unaffected by the change. The old system can continue to operate for farmers who remain in REPS 3.

Farmers in REPS 3 who intend to switch over to REPS 4 will need to put in a payment application for REPS before the 2008 Single Pay- ment application deadline, but their

first REPS 4 payment will issue in the normal timeframe linked to the commencement date of their new oe) ele relolm

“My officials argued at length against the commission’s proposal to change the rules as they did not best suit Ireland’s all-year REPS ap- plication open period,’ added the PODUNUR Kom

“However, I am determined to Operate the new system in as sim- ple and straightforward a way as possible, and my officials will be meeting the farming organisations shortly to discuss the practicalities for 2008.”

ANNE Marie Bourke (nee Collins), Limerick and formerly of Kevin Pa- rade, Killaloe held a most interest- ing and colourful exhibition at the Abbey Court Hotel during the bank holiday weekend.

Anne Marie, who comes from a most artistic and musical Killaloe family, is daughter of Danny and Maureen (nee Ryan) and a niece of the late Killaloe tenor, Sean Ryan.

As a young child, Anne Marie was always seen with her drawing pad

and pencils and frequently sat on the Canal Bank wall sketching the many interesting sights, buildings, hills etc around her. It is not surprising that the inspiration for many of her paint- ings comes from her native Killa- loe. She vividly recalls her very first painting, – a little boy seated under a tree cuddling his dog, which was completed at the tender age of twelve years.

Anne Marie is a Self-taught artist who works in watercolour, oil and pastel and indeed she sometimes combines other media to create

mixed media works.

“T always let the subject I am paint- ing dictate the medium I use and the result never fails to be visually stim- ulating,’ she explains.

Flowers are among her favourite subjects but she also paints splendid landscapes, lakeside scenes, sea- scapes, nostalgic buildings/scenes and still life.

In the summer, Anne Marie trav- elled to Venice and Provence where she tutored students from all over Eu- rope. She also painted for the Les-tr- ois-puits Gallery in Provence where

her work is currently on display.

In spite of her extremely busy schedule, she finds time to pass her knowledge and expertise on to other aspiring artists through the work- shops she conducts around Munster. Through these events she passes on liberating techniques to help stu- dents become free in their work and develop their own individual style.

Anne Marie is a director of Gallery 75, a professional associate of SAA London and a member of Limerick Art Society where she was chairper- son from 1999 to 2001.

, Dr John McCavitt highlights the role of Clare nobleman Donagh O’Brien, who risked his life travelling on the boat from the continent which picked the earls up from Rathmullan and

conveyed them to safety abroad.

Having previously fled from Ireland himself following his escape from Athlone gaol, O’Brien, a trusted fol- lower of the Earl of Tyrconnell and a cousin of the Earl of Thomond, per- sonally delivered the message to the earl that his life was in danger should he remain in Ireland.

The publication features a wide range of contemporary images, pho- tographs of the surviving built herit- age and modern art.

The book contextualises the exodus

of the earls in terms of the northern peace process and reveals new in- sights into the reasons for the Flight of the Earls, not least the link with ‘Ireland’s Helen’, Mabel Bagenal, the Protestant beauty. Her elope- ment with the dashing Earl of Tyrone precipitated a family feud with the Bagenals over her unpaid dowry that unleashed a tidal wave of events that not only led to the Nine-Years War but arguably swept the earls of Ty- rone and Tyrconnell to the continent in 1607.

The book emphasises the impact of the imprisonment of Dublin aldermen following the Gunpowder Plot in Eng- land in 1605 on the way events un- folded at Rathmullan two years later.

While many who departed from the shores of Lough Swilly were Ulster- men, evidence shows that all four provinces were represented on the vessel that left Rathmullan.

Considerable attention in this 400th anniversary year has focused on who comprised the so-called ‘Noble 99’, those who departed from Rathmullan

in September 1607. A chapter tackles some of the myths that have arisen over the centuries in this regard.

The ‘fate and fortunes’ of those who took part in the exodus is also charted, with poignant details of what happened to the earls themselves and the leading nobles as well as exam- ining the adventures and misadven- tures of the women and children who took part.

Perhaps most revealingly of all, the book chronicles the fate of those who managed to make it back to Ireland.

YOUNG music fans from east Clare last week had a day they will never forget, courtesy of the RTE National Symphony Orchestra, Glor and Scar- iff Community School.

On Wednesday, 500 youngsters from surrounding national schools were treated to three, hour-long ses- sions on classical music by the or- chestra.

Now that Scariff is offering mu- sic aS a subject right up to Leaving Certificate stage, their own music students were able to benefit enor- mously from the visit.

“It was definitely one of the best thing ever to happen at the school,” said Principal, Sean Daly.

‘The conductor, James Kavanagh, had a great rapport with the young- sters and he really got the best out of them. They loved it and the staff were just blown away by it.”

Roughly half the orchestra turned up for the three sessions in the school hall.

The sessions were part of a larger visit organised by Clare County Council Arts Office and Glor.

The National Symphony Orchestra took up residence in County Clare last week and their programme en-

compassed workshops for primary school students, concerts for second- ary school students and public con- certs in Kilkee and Ennis with mas- ter piper Liam O’F lynn.

An estimated six thousand people heard the musicians of the orchestra perform in the course of the week.

To prepare the ground conductor James Cavanagh ran a training ses- sion for teachers in Glor in Septem- oe

Members of the orchestra also con- tributed their own informal voluntary element to the residency week with outreach activities including per- formances in local nursing homes.

Principal Daly said that staff and students at the Scariff school were “delighted that they choose to come here. It was great for the area and great for the school as well”.

PM CUESS deem pede mete) eco s colonel oy the RTE NSO, with enthusiastic re- sponses in past years from schools and public audiences alike in Kerry, Donegal, Cork, Mayo, Galway and Laois.

A SHANNON-BASED aviation leasing firm secured pre-tax profits of $36 million, according to accounts filed to the Companies Office.

Underlining the buoyancy of the aviation sector in the Shannon Free Zone, GE Commercial Aviation Services Ltd experienced a 24 per cent increase in turnover from $146 million to €177 million.

The company — owned by US giant, General Electric — is engaged in the leasing of aircraft and engines and the provision of management serv- ices to the aviation industry.

According to accounts filed with the Companies Office, “both the lev- el of business and the year end finan- cial position were satisfactory and

the directors expect that the present level of activity will be sustained for the foreseeable future”.

The accounts show that profits be- fore tax dropped from $46 million in 2005 to $34 million in 2006.

The profits last year by GE Com- mercial Aviation Services Ltd have resulted in the company accumulat- ing $377 million.

The company’s accounts show that itemployed 141 in 2005 with a salary bill of $24 million. This increased to OM Odom MIs TIE IA Mme tl mem ele million last year.

The company’s operating profit dropped from $47 to $15 million. However, the company’s profits were boosted through $21 million received through the sale of assets.

The accounts show that the di-

rectors’ remuneration increased to $3.562 million. This included a bo- nus of $1.891 million and salaries of OI PSB reTe Ub COee

EArlier this year, the company ord- ared 15 Boeing 777s — a mix of seven 777-300ER (Extended Range) pas- senger jetliners and eight 777 Freight- ers — and 24 Boeing 737-800s.

Deliveries of both the 777s and 737s will begin in 2008 and extend through 2010.

GE Commercial Aviation Services (GECAS) is the commercial aircraft financing and leasing business of GE and part of GE Infrastructure. GECAS has a fleet of 1,450 owned aircraft it leases to more than 230 airlines in some 70 countries, and it manages nearly 300 aircraft for oth- ae

TWO separate accidents, one on the roads and another at sea, have taken two lives during a tragic bank holi- day weekend in Clare.

It could well have been a triple tragedy weekend as nothing short of a miracle saved the life of an 18- month baby girl, who was struck by a car in the driveway of a family home in Kilkee yesterday.

29-year-old young farmer, Patrick Murphy, was killed when his car hit an ESB pole near Tulla in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Hours later, a Polish fisherman lost his life after he was swept to sea in Kilkee at lunchtime on Sunday.

The 18-month-old baby girl was struck after she walked into the path of a car being driven by her grandfa- ther in Kilkee, yesterday morning.

The baby was knocked down and sustained serious head injuries and oe) slow Be-LOLADNKOKE

She was rushed to Ennis General Hospital, where her condition stabi- lised. She was later moved to Lim- erick Regional Hospital where hopes are high that she will make a full recovery.

The matter was not reported to gardai in Kilkee. It happened in the private driveway of a house and is not a matter for a Garda probe.

Gardai are, however, investigating the cause of the road crash which claimed the life of Patrick Murphy at around 2.45am on Sunday.

He was on his way home from so- cialising when his jeep struck an ESB pole and overturned at Cloonaleary, approximately one mile from Tulla. The overturned vehicle was seen by a passer-by and the alarm was raised at 2.55am. He was removed to En- nis General Hospital where he was

pronounced dead at 4.10am.

A DEVELOPER in east Clare has been given to go ahead for conten- tious plans to build 27 homes in Tua- mgraney — only after An Bord Plean- ala disregarded the recommendation of its inspector to refuse permission for the development.

Earlier this year, Conor Daly se-

cured planning permission for the housing development in the east of the village. Mr Daly secured permission for the development in spite of strong local opposition. with local residents stat- ing that “it is not too late to learn from the mistakes made in other villages and towns that now have de- velopment but inadequate water and sewerage facilities, increased traffic hazards and a ‘commuter’ popula- nto) ae

However, local residents appealed

the decision and outlined their con- cerns in relation to a lack of public facilities and highlighted the serious lack of water pressure and supply, the traffic generation from the pro- posed development an implications for safety and the contemporary and suburban nature of proposed houses.

They stated that, “The present situation with regard to waste water treatment and public water facili- ties in the Tuamgraney-Scariff area is unsatisfactory and no further de- velopment should be permitted until iW slontomrsDUoMUN Osea eALOloLem

“Public water supplies are grossly inadequate serving existing develop- seTS ale

“We are aware that there are plans to upgrade the sewage system in late 2007, but are unaware of any plans to upgrade the existing water sup- ply that is already seriously deficient — we may be another seven or eight

years waiting for this.

An Taisce also pointed out that the development would be premature pending water and wastewater sys- tems installation.

The site is zoned for housing, how- ever, the inspector in the case recom- mended that planning be refused.

The inspector stated, ““Whilst ac- knowledging the land use zoning of the proposed site, I do not consider that its development should take place in the absence of a detailed master plan which should include the land to the east and address the crucial issue of traffic safety in the overall context.

“IT am not satisfied based on the information submitted that the traf- fic and safety implications of the proposed development are properly addressed. Arising from my assess- ment above therefore I recommend that planning permission be refused

for the proposed development for one reason.

However, the appeals board ruled that planning permission for the de- velopment should be granted, stating that further submissions made on ap- peal dealt with the concerns of the inspector.

The board ruled that having regard to the residential zoning of the site and the submissions made in regard to the appeal, it 1s considered that, subject to compliance with the con- ditions set out below, the proposed development would not seriously in- jure the amenities of the area or of property in the vicinity, would not be prejudicial to public health and would be acceptable in terms of traf- fic safety and convenience.

The proposed development would, therefore, be in accordance with the proper planning and sustainable de- velopment of the area.

focused on how schooling

was very different many years ago. Over 800 children attended the third annual FIS festival, which cel- ebrates outstanding achievements by primary school children involved in the FIS (Film In Schools) project. The FIS project is an initiative de- sisned to introduce the medium

of film as a support to the Primary School Curriculum.

Commenting on the awards, Minis- ter for Education and Science Mary Hanafin TD said “Children from Dun Chaoin, Kerry, to Sligo and from Wexford to Louth and many schools in between have made films using the FIS methodology. This year there is such a wide range of films – historical, comedy, horror and cinn as Gaeilge freisin.

“A special thanks to all the teachers involved in FIS who have risen to the challenge by providing such wonder- ful creative learning opportunities for their children.”

As part of the curriculum for pri- mary schools, children in over 100 primary schools throughout Ireland wrote, directed and produced their own five-minute films. Their ef- forts were supported by the National Centre for Technology in Education which provided training in film mak- ing techniques and digital and film editing equipment.

Anne White, National Coordinator with the National Centre for Technol- ogy in Education said, “FIS touches every nerve of the primary curricu- lum. It brings alive the immense cre- ativity of children and their ability to apply the technology in a collabo- rative way in filmmaking. It simply makes learning great fun.”