The Lord God then took the man and settled him in the garden of Eden, to cultivate and care for it. And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”; and it was so”.[Book of Genesis].
There is only one ‘Earth’ as we know it and in the last 50 years, the human population has doubled, our global economy has quadrupled and global trade has increased ten times.
Presently, 1.6 Earths would be required to meet the demands that we as humans now make on mother nature each year.
Here in Thurles and elsewhere engineers, fronted by pointless, powerless elected local representatives, continue to make changes to our ecosystem without the consent of our local community. Some do so knowingly, others are negligent through wilful ignorance and a lack of basic biodiversity education.
Biodiversity encompasses the millions of species resident on our planet, from our plant life; our animals, to the fungi and bacteria and the genetic diversity among them.
The very air we breathe, the water and food we consume all rely on biodiversity. Thus when one of these components are changed or removed, then the entire system becomes affected, thus producing a positive or, worse still, a negative consequence on our communities.
Think about it for a moment. Nature provides us with our oxygen, it purifies the water we drink, it ensures fertile soil, and it produces the variety of foods we require to stay healthy and to resist the abnormal condition that negatively affects our bodies. With growing everyday knowledge, it offers substances for developing medicines and even helps mitigate the impact of climate change by storing carbon and regulating local rainfall.
It is therefore with great disappointment, over the past 12 days we have watched the destruction of biodiversity at Lady’s Well in Thurles and the total disregard for Section 40 of the Wildlife Act, by Green Party Minister Mr Malcolm Noonan and his staff at the National Parks & Wildlife Service, latter who were warned in advance of this intended destruction.
Tarmac now appears to be the order of the day, removing the naturally occurring Bluebells, Primroses, Dandelines, Daffodils, Cowslips, Woodland Violets, Cow Parsley, Cuckoo Flower, Buttercups, Yellow Iris, Brassica, all evident for the enjoyment of the leisurely walker. Gone also are the 3 seats, so enjoyed by the unhurried elderly visitor.
The main purposes of introducing Section 40 of the Wildlife Act, was to protect bird life during the nesting season, to help prevent forest fires, and to protect vegetation and wildlife habitats during the months of growth and reproduction. A closed period between March 1st and August 31st was set out in this legislation, during which a prohibition remains in place on the destruction of any vegetation on “land not then cultivated” and of any vegetation growing in a ditch or hedge.
We have a situation here in Thurles where Tarmac is being put everywhere except in our street surface potholes.
Like so many other laws in Ireland, in the words of William Shakespeare, (Hamlet) same are, to our shame, “more honoured in the breach than in the observance.”
Destruction of Biodiversity on the Thurles Lady’s Well Right-of-Way & now destroyed Double Ditch Right-of-Way, are being denounced in Social Media threads. The threads begun by Thurles.Info and carried by @ThurlesHour demonstrate the growing feelings of lovers of our local environment and the distrust of County Councils and their officials.
Some of the remarks hereunder posted on Twitterby other people.
“County councils across Ireland don’t seem to ‘get’ nature.”
“Thurles Municipal District council got funding to design, secure planning & construct a river walk from Thomond Road to Turtulla. Landowner consent was not forthcoming. They decided to spend the money asap – removing all trees, laying down tarmac on the route of the Double Ditch!”
Biodiversity & Heritage Destroyed By Tipperary County Council & Irish National Parks and Wildlife Service, Without Any Local Consultation.
“Local authority greenway. No environmental oversight. Asphalt laid up to river. Token 2m buffer. Chain-link/welded mesh fencing down the side to ensue no critters pass. Eventually all these will need to be taken out, and the riverbanks restored.”
“Greenways are like a lottery win for quarry owners.”
“Wrecking the place.”
“What would a riverside greenway look like if it were ecologically sound? Is there an acceptable set back distance or preferred material?”
“This is happening along any path that is designated a Greenway.”
Thurles.Info now asks WHY?
Meanwhile: Attempts to contact Malcolm Noonan’s Office via email [Mos MOS@housing.gov.ie via mail3.itservices.gov.ie & malcolm.noonan@oireachtas.ie], between Sat, 22nd August 2020, and Thursday, 24th February, 2022, and on numerous other recorded occasions, fell on deaf ears. Currently staff at his constituency address; The Parade, Co. Kilkenny, do not even answer phone calls. In the past two years despite numerous attempts we have received only two “Automated Email Replies” from his office.
A Chara, Automatic reply: Destruction of Thurles Heritage Thank you for contacting the departmental office of Malcolm Noonan, T.D., Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform. Your email will be reviewed and a response will issue in due course, should one be required. Le gach dea-ghuí, Malcolm Noonan Office of the Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform
Our dealings with Mr Eamon Ryan TD have been equally ignored. Again we were sent 1 Automatic reply on Wed, 6th April 2022 and 4 on Mon, 11th April, despite being contacted only once, on each of the afore mentioned dates by myself. (So 4 staff opened it and decided to ignore the content.)
Automatic reply: Destruction of Thurles Heritage A chara, Many thanks for your email. As I am sure you can appreciate, I receive a large volume of emails on a daily basis. Your issue is important to me and myself or one of my team will be back to you as soon as possible. In the meantime, if you have a query relating to the below areas, you might find the following email addresses helpful: Matters related to Dublin Bay South constituency: eamon.ryan@oireachtas.ie Matters related to the Dept of Environment, Climate, Communications networks: minister.ryan@decc.gov.ie Eamon Ryan TD Minister for Environment, Climate, Communications and Transport.
Despite our email communications being civil, we have never spoken or received even one, single, reply from staff at Mr Eamon Ryan’s department. We did explain our problem on one occasion to a member of Mr Malcolm Noonan’s, Kilkenny Staff, who confirmed that they had received my emails in the past, but could not explain why they were not replied too.
Meanwhile, our dealings with staff at National Parks and Wildlife Service were equally disappointing. Early communications stated from NPWL stated, “Please note that if these works are part of development covered by planning permission then they are exempt from Section 40 of the Wildlife Act. John will update you on his findings in due course.”
Then NPWS service claimed they granted verbal permission to Tipperary Co. Council in late February on the grounds it was a road or other structure. Quote “However, it should also be noted that the clearance of vegetation in the course of road or other construction works or in the development or preparation of sites on which any building or other structure is intended to be provided is exempted under Section 40.”
The truth is, there was No Road; No new ConstructionWorks; No other new structures; just a small, yet valuable piece of 176 year old Thurles Heritage.
National Parks and Wildlife Service have further confirmed that because of “work stress”, they had forgotten to recognise the Mill Road address we had reported and identified in relation to breaches of Sect 40 of the Wildlife Act. Thus when asked for documentation they then confirmed, quote: – (A) “Communication between Tipperary County Council and a named Wildlife Ranger was only verbal, there is no written documentation.“ (B) “Any written communication between Tipperary County Council and the builder is in their possession, National Parks and Wildlife Service do not have same.” (C) “Furthermore any request for such information needs to follow the AIE process.“ [Latter AIE referred to is “Access to Information on the Environment”]
“Our heritage is what we have inherited from the past, to value and enjoy in the present, and to preserve and pass on to future generations. In helping shape our identity, our heritage becomes part of what we are. Our expression of this identity shows others what we value; it highlights our values and priorities. Our heritage provides clues to our past and how our society has evolved. It helps us examine our history and traditions and enables us develop an awareness about ourselves. It helps us understand and explain why we are the way we are.”
The above are not my words but the words of the Irish Heritage Council, See HERE .
Then this evening, April 20th 2022, out of the blue, we received an email in pdf format. Yes, readers I fool you not, after almost two years of waiting, it arrived from staff at Minister Malcolm Noonan’s Office, set in the form of a standardised letter, sent with the permission of Ms Danielle McDonnell, (Private Secretary to Minister Malcolm Noonan T.D.); signed by a person in his constituency office in Co. Kilkenny, latter yet another member of staff authorised to act on behalf of the same Ms Danielle McDonnell.
Mr Noonan’s almost two year old delayed communication read. Dear Mr. Willoughby, On behalf of Mr. Malcolm Noonan, T.D. Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform, I wish to refer to your emails regarding the removal of a hedgerow by Tipperary County Council at Mill Road, Thurles. The works in question were carried out to facilitate the upgrade of an existing pathway. In this instance the National Parks and Wildlife Service are satisfied that these works did not constitute a breach of Section 40 of the Wildlife Act. Yours sincerely, P.P. Danielle McDonnell (Private Secretary to Minister Malcolm Noonan T.D.).
Remarkably, Minister Malcolm Noonan’s dictated communication, failed to explain in his long awaited communicated, why Tipperary Co. Council and builders were given permission to destroy irreplaceable Thurles history, which as we previously stated, was a certain sure attraction for foreign and domestic tourism.
Same has been destroyed despite every Irish Government department; Elected Tipperary Politician and double jobbing Local Councillor, being warned exactly what was going to happen, since 2019.
So, Minister Noonan, I totally reject your recent delayed communication. I continue to seek your explanation as to why, based on historic evidence (See page 6) and a falsified Archaeological Impact Statement, that two Green Party politicians; namely you Sir and Mr Eamon Ryan failed to communicate; to fully investigate this piece of Thurles heritage and now choose to protect the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Service?
According to the Heritage Council,Quote “An important part of their work is to encourage local communities to take responsibility for and participate in the development and conservation of their heritage. Such projects help generate a greater sense of pride and belonging in the local area through increased participation…and sheer enjoyment! Cultural tourism and activity holidays on our natural landscapes and countryside continue to grow, outperforming all other tourism sectors.”
Both of you gentlemen must now reply to the question being asked, WHY?
Ecological – the set of relationships existing between individual animal, plants, or single-celled life forms and their environment.
Thurles Shopping Centre are rightly proud of their new Eco-Friendly renovations surrounding their shopping centre complex. They strive to be even more eco friendly for 2022 and are looking for your help.
To celebrate, Thurles Shopping Centre are running an Art Competition for children aged 12 years and under.
Competition: What To Do.
First pick up an entry form leaflet from Thurles Shopping Centre. The competition itself is to design a wall mural to fit in with a theme for Thurles Shopping Centre, based on “Wildlife”. Do remember on completion of your chosen design; fill out your Name, Age, Address and Parent Contact Phone Number. Next, place your entry form into the Box provided in the central Mall area within the Shopping centre; easily located in the area between the Eason bookshop & An Post offices.
Prizes
Winner will receive a €250 voucher for Thurles Shopping Centre. Plus, the winning Artwork will be enlarged and painted on the wall at the River Walk entrance at Thurles Shopping centre.
€11.7 million funding for research to support the development and implementation of environmental policies in Ireland.
The EPA is inviting proposals from the research community to help address climate change and other emerging, complex environmental problems. €11.7 million is available for new research projects. Ms Laura Burke, (EPA Director General) said, “EPA-funded research is essential to improving national understanding of our environment, the challenges it faces and responses to these challenges. The EPA funds research that seeks to address knowledge gaps, provide robust evidence to inform policy and support the implementation of environmental policies in Ireland. This supports an evidence led approach to policy-making based on excellent science and information.”
Highlighting the importance of a clean, healthy and well-protected environment for health, wellbeing and quality of life, the EPA is calling for proposals across four interconnected research areas. Topics include the following overarching and interrelated themes:
Climate science, adaptation, scenarios, resilience and policy response.
Improving knowledge on greenhouse gas and air emission inventories.
Health in industrial regulation and in assessment.
Chemicals, hazardous substances and radiation in our environment.
Innovative approaches to environmental monitoring.
Land use knowledge, assessment and environmental risk.
Opportunities and barriers in climate action and in circular economy.
Raw materials and resources substitution and efficiency.
The EPA Research Programme is a Government of Ireland initiative funded by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. This Research Call is designed to support the development and implementation of environmental policies in Ireland. Dr Alice Wemaere, (EPA Research Manager), said, “We are delighted to be working in partnership with a number of organisations, including the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine; the Geological Survey Ireland and Met Éireann, to co-fund environmental research and address key environmental challenges. We are also pleased to announce two Open topics covering the potential for use of satellite data in environmental monitoring and assessment and the role of the environment in development and transmission of antimicrobial resistance.”
As part of its wide range of functions, the EPA manages an environmental research programme that delivers essential scientific support for environmental policy development, implementation and broader decision making. The EPA has been funding research in Ireland since 1994 and is currently funding more than 200 on-going research projects.
Further details about the 2022 EPA Research Call are available HERE.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) welcomes the Order of the High Court today, which has required Harte Peat to cease the extraction of peat in the particular areas outlined in the judgment of Ms Justice Phelan – which was delivered recently. The EPA notes that the Court imposed a limited, conditional stay on the taking effect of the Order, to allow Harte Peat to lodge an appeal of the judgment, which it must do before April 27th, 2022.
The judgment and resultant Order has upheld the EPA’s position that the extraction of peat from an area greater than 50 hectares requires an Integrated Pollution Control licence from the EPA. This must be in place before any extraction of peat and any associated works such as drainage can take place.
Commenting on the Judgment EPA Director of the Office of Environmental Enforcement, Dr Tom Ryan, noted, “This judgment emphasises the importance of compliance with existing environmental regulations for the protection of the environment and confirms that operators cannot continue to extract peat in an uncontrolled and environmentally damaging way. The unlawful extraction of peat causes enormous damage to the environment by destroying unique habitats that support biodiversity and carbon sinks that can play an important role in the fight against climate change.”
Dr Ryan warned, “Peat operators need to take heed of the judgment, respect the rule of law and the importance of compliance with existing regulations and be aware that if they unlawfully extract peat the EPA will take similar enforcement actions against them.”
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