The Implementation Committee for the Espoo Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context has found that Britain has not met its obligations to discuss the impact of a nuclear accident with?the affected public in other countries, including Ireland. The findings are expected to be confirmed at the next plenary session in Minsk in June 2017.
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As the European Commission begins infringement proceedings against Ireland for failing to complete the designation requirements for its Special Areas of Conservation, it proposes to close another investigation into the protection of the fresh water pearl mussel on the basis of commitments given by the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and Coillte Teo., the State Forestry Board. read full story / add a comment

The National Parks and Wildlife Service [NPWS] does not have the power to stop the Forest Service permitting forestry felling during the breeding season, even in an area designated for protection under European law.

This has emerged in controversy over the felling of trees at Castleforbes Estate, County Longford, where the local NPWS staff’s request for permission to stop the felling was denied by the Regional Manager of NPWS, who stated that ‘NPWS cannot stop such works and that is in the remit of the Forest Service.’ read full story / add a comment

MLA and TD hit out at ‘cloak and dagger’ tactic by authorities in allowing this drill to take place; implications for South

People Before Profit to move Bill to ban fracking in the Dáil once it resumes

People Before Profit MLA, Gerry Carroll and TD, Richard Boyd Barrett condemn moves to initiate fracking in Co Antrim and warned if test drills go ahead it could open the door for fracking North and South. The statement comes after NI Water’s decision to allow Infrastrata to begin drilling for oil just 380 metres away from Woodburn reservoir in Co Antrim. This could lead to UK company, Tramboran, attempting to drill in Fermanagh, which in turn, could lead to fracking in Leitrim and Cavan. read full story / add a comment

The environmental group friends of the Irish Environment [FIE] have published on their website photographs of young birds killed in their nests by tree felling during this bird’s breeding season at a County Longford estate.

An investigation into felling at Castleforbes Estate County Longford by the Forest Service after a complaint from FIE in early April confirmed reports of the great spotted woodpecker drumming in the woods scheduled for felling but officials refused to halt the work because no nests were found. Other bird recorded in the Castleforbes Estate include the owl and the kestrel, harrier, and the cuckoo[TL1] . The badger, fox, pine martin, hedgehog, stoat and red squirrel are also present, the latter returning and flourishing only in the last 10 years. read full story / add a comment

CHASE has launched a plume plotter for the proposed 240,000 tonne incinerator at Ringaskiddy Co Cork. Developed by plumeplotter.com it provides a real time map image modelling ground-level pollution from the incinerator plume, modelled using AERMOD taking incinerator specifications provided by Indaver in their EIS, current weather data from local weather stations, Ordnance Survey (OS) data for places and NASA data for terrain.

Residents in the Cork Harbour area and far beyond can use the plume plotter to see pollutant dispersal at any given time on www.plumeplotter.com/ringaskiddy. read full story / add a comment

Science No Longer Supports Fluoridation. Are politicians beholden to special interest groups which use appeal to authority and big money to protect fluoridation instead of the American people? read full story / add a comment

The Minister for Agriculture has been urged not to end the suspension of timber felling at Castle Forbes Estate in County Longford until a full investigation has been undertaken.

The suspension was initiated by the Forest Service on April 5, 2016 after a complaint was lodged by the environmental group Friends of the Irish Environment for General Felling Licences issued in January and February of this year.

In today’s letter, the group alleges that neither of the two licenses granted required that work not take place during the bird nesting season from 1 May to 30 September. read full story / add a comment

Bord Pleanala have refused a request by CHASE for an extension to the Oral Hearing date for Indavers Ringaskiddy incinerator application and confirmed that the Oral Hearing will start on 19 April at Carrigaline Court Hotel at 10.30am, citing 12 July 2016 as deadline date under Strategic Infrastructure Process.

CHASE wrote to An Bord Pleanala following receipt of registered letters on 31 March/1st April advising of the hearing date, leaving just 12 working days preparation for the hearing. Previous hearings lasted 3 weeks.

Bord Pleanala received over 220 submissions objecting to the proposal, each of which was accompanied by a payment of 50Euro. Objections were made by all 4 TD’s for the South Central area, including Defence Minister Simon Coveney, Fine Fail Party Leader Micheal Martin, Michael McGrath (FF) and newly elected Sinn Fein TD Donnchadh O’Laoghaire. read full story / add a comment

The European Ombudsman’s Office is to review its decision to close the file against the Commission’s handling of a complaint over alleged failure to notify consumers of the levels of water-borne toxins trihalomethanes [THMs] linked to cancers in Irish public water supplies.

During the Commission investigation the Irish authorities told the Commission that THMs exceed the WHO/EU permitted parameters in 412,000 of Irish Water’s 1.5m customer base, more than 1,000,000 consumers. THMS are a group of more than 60 chemicals, including chloroform which are disinfectant by products created when water with a high organic matter – such as peaty water or excessive algae – is treated with chlorine. read full story / add a comment

Work is proceeding in Woodburn Forest, near Carrickfergus (NI), to construct a drill site for an exploratory well.
The Stop the Drill campaign opposes the drilling, which will take place 380 m uphill from a major drinking water reservoir serving 130,000 people, arguing that it places drinking water at risk of contamination. The site is owned by NI Water, Northern Ireland’s only water utility, which has given permission for the drilling by Infrastrata to go ahead, on the condition that hydraulic fracturing is not used. read full story / add a comment

The ongoing disaster that is Salmon farming both here in Ireland and around the world continues to demonstrate this industry is doing huge damage to the wild salmon and is overall destructive of the ecosystem. Not only that farmed salmon are regularly dosed in deadly toxic chemicals in a desperate effort to keep the sea lice parasites and disease under control and in every case they don't keep any control and the diseases just get more resistant. Salmon are simply not evolved to live in cages in extremely close proximity to tens of thousands of other salmon.

In this report, a letter from Ireland Against Salmon Farms outlines the most recent major salmon farm escape from a salmon farm off Clare Island, Co. Mayo. read full story / add a comment

The Dutch company Indaver operates an incinerator in Duleek, Co. Meath and have lodged planning permission for another incinerator in Cork Harbour. In light of this the explosion of their plant in Netherlands today has significance for us here.

60 firefighters rushed to control an explosion at Indaver’s flagship Antwerp facility today (26 Feb 2016) in what was described by local fire services as a ‘municipal disaster’ as they shut down the nearby road tunnel and requested residents close doors and windows. read full story / add a comment

SOLID NATIONAL OPPOSITION TO FRACKING.

35% of General Election candidates nationally have committed to supporting legislation to ban fracking. Details of party responses are as follows: read full story / add a comment

The “Sign the Pledge” campaign, coordinated by Fracking Free Network, is a big success. 154 candidates in this year’s General Election have so far personally signed the pledge against fracking! From all parties and from all constituencies, candidates have committed to support legislation that will ban fracking in Ireland. There is no doubt that the issue of fracking is now a national rather than a local issue. Candidates from Cork and Kerry, from Donegal and Dublin, from Galway and Wexford have indicated that they will work to ensure that fracking will never be introduced to Ireland. read full story / add a comment

PRESS RELEASE - Friends of the Irish Environment - 17 Feb 2016 - A campaign in Europe to have Irish Water customers informed of toxic chemicals exceeding the World Health Organisation and European Union safety standards has failed, according to Friends of the Irish Environment.

The environmental lobby group, which specialises in the enforcement of European environmental legislation, has been told by the European Ombudsman that she cannot require the European Commission to force Irish Water to inform consumers on their bill that the water they receive contains levels of trihalomethanes above the EU and WHO permitted levels. read full story / add a comment

Good news – it’s official!

The EPA Research Study on Fracking is now stopped. This study was targeted by the campaign against fracking as research showed the study was compromised – it was being led by companies with huge vested interests in the oil and gas industry. A statement from the Department (DCENR) yesterday (2nd) confirmed that the study has been stopped after its first phase, which included an overall look at regulations and legislation governing fracking. Phase 2, on-the-ground studies in Leitrim and Fermanagh which would have included some drilling, will not proceed and a report of Phase 1 will be published in Q3 of this year. read full story / add a comment

If there was ever a way to discourage recycling it is to charge for it. But there is more to this story. Way back during the Bin Tax campaign it was said that the original plan was to charge for recycling and all along the plan was to send most of the recycling material like paper, cardboard and plastic to feed the huge incinerator then planned for Dublin.

This €600 million incinerator is now being built after it was forced on the people of Dublin by the former chairman of Dublin City Council John Tierney in the most undemocratic and secretive way and completely against all the councillors. This incinerator needs to be fed huge amounts of burnable material to keep it 'profitable'. It was sized for 600,000 tonnes which is more than all waste from Dublin. Tierney of course signed a lucrative deal with the incinerator operators Covanta whereby the council will make up the gap financially if they don't get enough material to feed into the monster. Now the dots have joined up and we can be sure that this announcement to start charging for recycling in July 2016 is very much connected with this since the incinerator will start operating early in 2017.
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High Profile foxhunter caught redhanded assaulting two farmers...dramatic video footage exposes bullying and thuggery!

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White uses Christmas to sign off on Corrib gas despite pending judicial review of EPA licence. read full story / add a comment