January

Hogan approves funding for a unique tourism and heritage attraction ‘The Farm’ Grenagh, Co Cork

31/01/2011

Phil Hogan, T.D., Minister for the Environment, Community & Local Government announced yesterday (30th January, 2012) that he has given sanction to Avondhu/Blackwater Partnership Ltd to approve funding of up to €195,615.94 to “The Farm”,  Grenagh, Co Cork.

This funding, provided under the Diversification measure of the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013 will provide financial support to allow Forde Products (Cork) to develop a unique tourism, cultural/educational and heritage attraction. “The Farm” is an integrated agri-tourism, educational and recreational development consisting of a multifunctional building that will house a cáfe/restaurant, classrooms, office, craft shop, an indoor play area and an outdoor playground.       

The LEADER elements of the Rural Development Programme offer significant financial resources to rural entrepreneurs and it is critical in the current economic environment that entrepreneurial spirit is harnessed and supported to avail of these resources and further develop their businesses, having both direct and indirect positive effects on their local economies.    

Source: Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government

Plastic bag levy to be introduced in Northern Ireland

31/01/2012

Northern Ireland is set to become the second UK region to introduce a plastic bag levy, following Wales. A 5p tax on single plastic bags will be introduced next year with plans to double the levy in 2014 to 10p. “There is no doubt that carrier bags are a scourge on the environment,” said Alex Attwood, Minister for the Environment in the Northern Ireland executive.

“I am committed to making Northern Ireland a better place to live, work and invest and this will certainly contribute to that goal.”

Following the introduction of a similar plastic bag levy in the Republic of Ireland, consumption of plastic bags has fallen by 90%.

Science for All: Dublin City Libraries

30/01/2012

Throughout 2012, Dublin City’s public libraries will run a co-ordinated programme of events with a scientific theme for Dublin City of Science 2012. These will run in to national programmes such as Science Week, Engineers Week, Bealtaine, Heritage Week and Children’s Book Festival. There will be a theme of science adopted in to into all relevant programmes and provide an exciting calendar of science related events, free of charge, to the general public. These programmes will run throughout Dublin City Libraries’ twenty-one branch libraries and will include talks, workshops and exhibitions catering for all ages.

For details of events during the year, contact a Dublin City pubic library or see the Dublin City Library Events website.

Source: Dublin City of Science 2012

Science for Environment Policy issue 270 now available online

30/01/2012

Science for Environment Policy issue 270 is now available online. Articles include:

• Deep sea filming reveals thriving fish communities among Irish coral reefs
• Coastal structure repairs can significantly disturb marine ecosystems
• Progress in education for Sustainable Development
• Economic value of green infrastructure estimated by new method
• Scientists call for swifter protection against forest diseases

New Eco-Innovation Action Plan launched

27/01/12

The new Eco-Innovation Action Plan (EcoAP) will boost innovation that reduces pressure on the environment, and bridge the gap between innovation and the market. The EcoAP is one of the commitments of the Innovation Union Flagship Initiative, building on the 2004 EU Environmental Technologies Action Plan (ETAP). It expands the focus from green technologies to the broader concept of eco-innovation, targeting specific bottlenecks, challenges and opportunities for achieving environmental objectives through innovation.

Key aspects of the new Action Plan include:

1. Using environmental policy and legislation to promote eco-innovation;
2. Supporting demonstration projects and partnering to bring promising, smart and ambitious operational technologies to market;
3. Developing new standards to boost eco-innovation;
4. Mobilising financial instruments and support services for SMEs;
5. Promoting international co-operation;
6. Supporting the development of emerging skills and jobs and related training programmes to match labour market needs; and
7. Promoting eco-innovation through European Innovation Partnerships

Further information is available on the European Commission website.

New Irish Wind Farm Vessel Takes to the Seas

25/01/2011

Arklow Marine Services (24th January, 2012) officially launched its first vessel designed and built specifically for servicing offshore wind farms in the U.K. The new 20 metre aluminium catamaran cost £1.7m and created 10 new jobs during the build and fit out. The development of the innovative vessel was part-financed by Enterprise Ireland’s R&D Fund. A second vessel is currently under construction at the yard and is due for delivery in July 2012, again for the export market.

Arklow Marine Services is a fifth-generation family business established in Arklow in 1864 and today is the directorship of Naval Architect Mr. Billy Tyrrell and Marine Engineer Mr. John Tyrrell. The company's core business is the design and construction of aluminium and steel boats such as passenger ferries, trawlers and bespoke designs such as amphibious vehicles.

Arklow Marine Services embarked on the innovative design when it secured a contract with UK-based Gardline Shipping. The need for new generation vessels for off-shore wind farms arose from the awarding of nine off-shore wind farm sites in UK coastal waters in January 2010. The United Kingdom is set to invest over £160bn, over the next thirty years in developing their offshore wind energy resources. Industry sources estimate that up to €30bn of investment in Irish offshore wind farms is also possible. Following today's launch, Arklow Marine Services are ideally positioned to capitalise on this rapidly developing market.

Source: Enterprise Ireland

New Irish Wind Farm Vessel Takes to the Seas

25/01/2011

Arklow Marine Services (24th January, 2012) officially launched its first vessel designed and built specifically for servicing offshore wind farms in the U.K. The new 20 metre aluminium catamaran cost £1.7m and created 10 new jobs during the build and fit out. The development of the innovative vessel was part-financed by Enterprise Ireland’s R&D Fund. A second vessel is currently under construction at the yard and is due for delivery in July 2012, again for the export market.

Arklow Marine Services is a fifth-generation family business established in Arklow in 1864 and today is the directorship of Naval Architect Mr. Billy Tyrrell and Marine Engineer Mr. John Tyrrell. The company's core business is the design and construction of aluminium and steel boats such as passenger ferries, trawlers and bespoke designs such as amphibious vehicles.

Arklow Marine Services embarked on the innovative design when it secured a contract with UK-based Gardline Shipping. The need for new generation vessels for off-shore wind farms arose from the awarding of nine off-shore wind farm sites in UK coastal waters in January 2010. The United Kingdom is set to invest over £160bn, over the next thirty years in developing their offshore wind energy resources. Industry sources estimate that up to €30bn of investment in Irish offshore wind farms is also possible. Following today's launch, Arklow Marine Services are ideally positioned to capitalise on this rapidly developing market.

Source: Enterprise Ireland

Hogan issues Roadmap for Climate Policy and Legislation

24/01/2012

Minister Phil Hogan, T.D., issued a work programme setting out the steps and milestones for the development of national climate policy and legislation.

The programme of work was also sent to the Chair of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Environment, Transport, Culture and the Gaeltacht as part of the follow-up to the Minister’s meeting with the Committee in December. In issuing the work programme, the Minister said, “I foresee a central role for the Joint Committee in the policy development process, most importantly on the critical issue of coming to a clear national understanding of how we will meet our binding EU and wider-international mitigation commitments, as well as pursuing our national objectives in a low-carbon global economy.” This role for the Committee was also reflected in the Government’s legislative programme for the Spring 2012 parliamentary session.

The work programme for policy development, including legislation covers the next 18 months (see below). The principal milestones include:

• a public consultation which will take place in the first half of 2012;
• in the second half of the year, the publication of an initial report by the NESC Secretariat on potential climate policies and measures (to be completed by end June 2012) and the development of heads of a Climate Bill for consideration by the Committee following Government approval (end-2012); and
• the consideration of the end-2012 final report by the NESC Secretariat and the heads of Bill by the Committee in the first half of 2013.

The Minister also reiterated his commitment to an open and transparent process involving all stakeholders. “A successful way forward for Ireland lies in structured dialogue on the range of views that exists across society, on an open and inclusive basis, and this will be facilitated at various points in the course of this work programme, beginning with the open consultation I will initiate next month” the Minister said.

Further details on the programme for development of national climate policy and legislation are available on the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government website.

Source: Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government

National Electric Vehicle Summit - 26th January

20/01/2011

Ireland is considered a leader in the global EV initiative with demography and political support making Ireland one of the most suitable locations in the world for a large-scale roll out of EVs. In light of this, t he National Electric Vehicles Summit will take place on Thursday 26th January 2012 at Croke Park, Dublin.

This innovative event is about making the most of the opportunities presented by EVs. It is about aligning objectives, creating partnerships and adopting business models to facilitate the entrance of EVs onto the Irish market. It will also look at the barriers to EVs becoming mainstream and being accepted by Irish consumers - a task that will be made a lot easier if the Arab states remain in turmoil and oil prices continue to rise.

Full details on the schedule and booking are available on the event website.

Ministers launch first Green Public Procurement Action Plan

Source: Irish Government News Service

Public Consultation on future GPP policies open until 3/4/2012

18/01/2011

The European Commission is gathering views and additional information on the potential measures related to Sustainable Consumption and Production. As part of this, we are consulting on options for policies implementing Green Public Procurement.

The consultation also looks at the Environmental Footprint of Products and the Environmental Footprint of Organisations.

Contribute to the consultation on the European Commission website.

Source: EU Green Public Procurement

Science for Environment Policy issue 268 now available online

18/01/2011

Science for Environment Policy issue 268 is now available online. Articles include:

• Carbon footprint of food adds up along the food chain
• L'Aquila earthquake of 2009 offers lessons in disaster response
• Soil POP concentrations in decline
• Distillery sludge used to treat radioactive sites
• What effect will the Water Framework Directive have on local planners?
• Climate and land use change to affect malaria spread in tropical Africa

Hogan and O’Dowd Announce Public Consultation on the Reform of the Water Sector

17/01/2011

Phil Hogan, T.D., Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, and Fergus O’Dowd, T.D., Minister of State with responsibility for NewERA today (15.1.2012 ) announced a six week public consultation on a suite of fundamental reforms of the water sector which the Government are planning to introduce. Through the water metering programme and a steady level of capital investment of potentially €600 million per annum, the water sector will create and sustain 2,000 construction jobs.

These reforms include:

1.     The establishment of a new public utility, Irish Water to take over the responsibility for the delivery of water services from local authorities;

2.     The introduction of water charges based on metered usage, with the metering programme to commence later in 2012;

3.     The introduction of independent economic regulation of the water sector under the Commission for Energy Regulation.  

A consultation paper on these issues, and a copy of the independent assessment which examined the optimal organisational structure for an Irish water utility is available on the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government website.

Views should be submitted in writing or by email to the address indicated below by close of business Friday 24th February 2012. Please ensure that all correspondence is clearly marked 'Consultation on reform of the water sector in Ireland'.

Water Services Section
Department of Environment,Community and Local Government
Room 1.23
Custom House
Dublin 1

Email: water@environ.ie

Source: Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government

Synge Street Leaving Cert Students Announced as WInners of the BT YOung Scientist & Technology Exhibition 2012

17/01/2011

The winner of the 48th annual BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition 2012 has been announced! Leaving Cert students Eric Doyle and Mark Kelly, both aged 17, from Synge Street CBS, Dublin 8 have taken home the top prize for their project entitled, “Simulation accuracy in the gravitational many-body problem”.  The announcement was made at the BT Arena at Dublin’s RDS this evening, by Minister for Education and Skills Ruairi Quinn, TD, along with Colm O’Neill, CEO, BT Ireland.  Eric and Mark were entered in the Chemical, Physical & Mathematical Sciences category, senior section.

Eric & Mark were presented with a cheque for €5,000, tickets to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the opportunity to represent Ireland at the 24th European Union Young Scientist competition taking place in Bratislava in September and a Waterford crystal trophy. 
Almost 1,200 students from 30 counties covering 550 projects from 221 schools nationwide competed for the coveted title ‘Winner of the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition 2012.’

Professor Pat Guiry, Head Judge, Chemical, Physical & Mathematical category said, “The project develops a novel mathematical approach which has a diverse range of applications from satellite placement to predicting network congestion in telecommunications.  In the opinion of the judging panel, an exceptional level of mathematical proficiency was demonstrated. Starting from Euler’s investigation in 1760 on the motion of planets, they simulated this complicated “many-body” problem using advanced computation and evaluated the accuracy of the solutions. Of particular note, they included an in-built accuracy estimation in their solution.”

Source: BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition

Green Business Workshops in 2012

16/01/2011

A number of free Introduction to Green Business workshops, including Achieving the Eco-label & Award, is available to Green Hospitality Members during 2012.

There will be two periods of training available, February to June and September to November, with 40 workshops taking place in total during the year. Each workshop takes ½ day to complete.

• 16 Introduction to Green Business – Free to all comers
• 16 Achieving the Eco-Label – for Non-certified GHP members
• 8 Achieving Silver/Gold Award – for certified GHP members
• Master Classes: GHP intend to run at least 6 Master Classes during the year

A full workshop schedule is available on the Green Hospitality website.

Public consultation on the future of LED-based lighting in Europe

13/01/2011

The European Commission  adopted a Green Paper and launched a public consultation on the future of LED-based lighting. LED lighting is one of the most energy-efficient and versatile forms of lighting - saving up to 70% energy and money compared to other lighting technologies. Faster LED deployment will ensure the success of Europe's lighting industry and help reduce energy use from lighting by 20% by 2020.

But Europe also faces a number of challenges and more input is needed from citizens and businesses to refine the policy. To this end a consultation will run until 29 February 2012 to collect feedback on the Commission's ideas.

LED lighting faces a number of challenges in the market: high purchase prices because it is a more sophisticated technology compared to the alternatives, lack of familiarity among potential users and a lack of common standards.

Further information is available on the Europa website.

Source: European Commission in Ireland

Trim announced as cleanest town in Ireland

12/01/2011

Trim was announced as the cleanest town in Ireland at a ceremony in Dublin on Monday (9th), pipping Swords and Killarney in the 2011 survey of litter levels in 53 towns and cities by Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL). Both were among 38 towns to be classed as “Clean to European Norms”.

This was the first time that Trim, which has been litter free since 2005, had won the IBAL Litter League. It was one of 9 towns to collect a Sustained Excellence award for being litter free for 5 years in a row, the others being Killarney, Cavan, Youghal, Fermoy, Castlebar, Ballina, Monaghan and Dundalk.

To mark its success, the town will receive a number of trees for planting locally. These are provided by the Irish Tree Centre, an IBAL member based in County Cork.

Source: IBAL

BeGreen: Preventing Waste and Saving Money

11/01/2011

BeGreen brings together all of the guides and programmes that have been put in place by the EPA, local authorities and other partners to promote waste prevention.

The guides provide easy to use information that all sectors can implement to reduce their production of waste, reduce the amount of water they use and reduce the amount of energy they consume. By implementing the guides businesses, homes and commercial activities can save money while acting in an environmentally responsible way.

The BeGreen programmes provide specific sectors with ways in which they too can participate in making Ireland a more sustainable country while saving themselves money. So check out the guides and programmes and become wise on how to Be Green!!

Source: EPA

Watertight: The future of Irish Water

11/01/2012

The Environmental Protection Agency and the Science Gallery will hold an hour-long free public event this coming Thursday evening [12 January 2012, 6 - 7pm] in the Science Gallery entitled Watertight: the Future of Irish Water. 

Hosted by Duncan Stewart of Eco Eye, EPA Director Micheal O Cinneide will discuss management, legislation and public participation, followed by an expert panel which will discuss possible directions that water resource management will take in Ireland in the future.

The event is free and you are invited to book in advance to assure your place through the BOOK NOW section at the link above. The event is part of the Science Gallery s very successful Surface Tension: The Future of Water exhibition which is supported by the EPA.

Source: EPA

Road to Rio+20 Mobilising Young People in Ireland

ECO-UNESCO

Recycling after the festive season

06/01/2011

As the festive season comes to an end and the New Year begins, make an extra effort to recycle all the excess packaging that builds up over Christmas. Each year many Christmas trees are discarded along the roadside, but remember that many councils are providing free disposal for Christmas trees.

For information on recycling facilities in your area, please visit the Recycle More website.

2012: UN International Year for Sustainable Energy for All

05/01/2011

2012 has been designated as the "International Year for Sustainable Energy for All" by the UN's General Assembly. The year is aimed at creating an enabling environment for the promotion and use of new and renewable energy technologies, including measures to improve access to such technologies.

2012 will mark some major milestones in the race to realize sustainable development as nations navigate the final laps on the Road to Rio+20. The UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) as it is formally known and now scheduled for later in June will address two over-arching themes-a Green Economy in the context of sustainable development and an institutional framework for sustainable development.

RIO+20, envisaged as a summit involving heads of state, comes 20 years after the Rio Earth Summit of 1992 that set the course for contemporary sustainable development and established the climate change, biodiversity and desertification treaties as well as a forum on forests.

2012 also marks the 40th anniversary of the environment programme of the UN. Highlights of the major activities for the first half of 2012 are available on the UNEP website.

New sustainable fuel source from willow

04/01/2012

A new, sustainable and cheap source of fuel is to be developed in an exciting new project at Skerries Mills which aims to involve the community in producing fuel from the humble willow tree.

Fingal County Council has approved a pilot study of a new allotment scheme to be evaluated at the Mill Complex in Skerries, focused on the production of willow tree timber as fuel. The announcement came in response to a motion at this month's meeting of the full council proposed by Cllr Ciaran Byrne (Lab) who called for the council's backing for a ' biomass energy production' scheme.

Willow timber is used as a renewable energy source throughout Europe. Large plantations of willow rods are repeatedly harvested every two to three years as a short rotation crop. The rods are cut down to a woodchip, dried and used in both domestic and industrial burners to produce heat and electricity.

The approach being adopted at the Skerries Mills scheme is the cultivation of willow in an allotment regime which experts say provides a yield two and a half times higher than from commercial farms. 'Most species are only one percent efficient, so we have a long way to go,' according to Dr. Anthony Heijenga chief scientist for GIA Consultancy, a U.S. based company specialised in the bio capture and recovery of chemicals from air and water, using a range of plant species including Willow who are working on the Skerries project.

Source: Fingal Independent

Public Consultation: Framework for Sustainable Development for Ireland

03/01/2011

The Minister for the Environment. Community and Local Government, Mr Phil Hogan, has launched a new draft Framework for Sustainable Development for Ireland for public consultation.

This draft Framework broadly follows the thematic approach of the EU Sustainable Development Strategy and includes:

• Sustainability of public finances and economic resilience
• Sustainable consumption and production
• Conservation and management of natural resources
• Climate change and clean energy
• Sustainable agriculture
• Sustainable transport
• Social inclusion, sustainable communities and spatial planning
• Public health
• Education, communication and behaviour change
• Innovation, research and development
• Skills and training
• Global poverty and sustainable development

You are invited to submit any comments or observations to Kevin Greene, (Tel.: 003531 888 2278; email: fsdi@environ.ie), Environment International and Sustainable Development Unit, Department of Environment, Community and Local Government  by close of business on Wednesday 29 February 2012.

Draft Framework for Sustainable Development in Ireland (PDF)

Source: Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government

National Biodiversity Centre launches new website of databases of Irish invertebrate pests and disease vectors

03/01/2011

The National Biodiversity Data Centre has launched a new website – Databases of Irish Invertebrate Pests and Disease Vectors. This website is a resource for anybody interested in the distribution of pests and disease vectors in Ireland.

The databases collated at the moment are for four groups of disease vectors (mosquitoes, fleas, lice and the liver-fluke snail) and one group of pests (the leatherjackets). In the past, pests and vector-borne diseases were common in Europe. They affected man, animals and agriculture. Their eradication in past decades is a direct result of advancing technology and control management.

However, in recent years the dramatic increase in globalisation, travel, trade and global warming, as well as growing resistance to some insecticides, have contributed to the re-emergence of those very same pests and vector-borne diseases.

The databases collated on this website are an important resource for understanding the past, present, and future distribution of Irish disease vectors and pests and it is hoped that more databases will be added in the future.

The Pests and Disease Vectors databases were collated together by the National Biodiversity Data Centre with funding from the Heritage Council. If you have a database of Irish pests or disease vectors that you would like to share with the Data Centre, please contact the National Biodiversity Data Centre.

Source: The National Biodiversity Data Centre