Join Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council
(DLRCC) and hundreds of millions of other
people and organisations across 4,000 cities
in 88 countries worldwide in signing up for
Earth Hour 2010 in an effort
to reduce the impact of global warming.
Governments worldwide are seeking to boost
economies by providing increased investment
for green and clean industries through green
stimulus funds introduced in 2009, most notably
in the US, EU, UK and China.
Limerick County Council is inviting submissions
from suitably qualified registered Building
Energy Rating (BER) Assessors who would be
interested in being placed on a panel with
Limerick County Council for the carrying out
of BER assessments on new and existing dwellings.
Brendan Smith TD, Minister for Agriculture,
Fisheries and Food, marked National Tree Week
with tree planting ceremonies at St. Tiarnach's
National School, St. Michael's National School,
Cootehill and Aughadreena National School.
rx3 - 'rethink,
recycle, remake' - formerly known as the
Market Development Programme - is hosting
the Sustainable Innovation Forum in order
to demonstrate opportunities working with
waste resources on the 27th April 2010
in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham, Dublin.
Ireland met its targets for generating
15 per cent of electricity from renewable
sources by 2010 in January, a conference in
Dublin was told last week.
The Economic and Social Research Institute
(ESRI) has said it will not withdraw its report
which is critical of the Environment Minister
John Gormley’s incineration policies.
The Economic and Social Research Institute’s
(ESRI) waste policy report was a “thinly-veiled
excuse” for the construction of the Poolbeg
incinerator, according to the author of a
report commissioned the Environment Minister
John Gormley.
The Minister for the Environment, Heritage
and Local Government, John Gormley TD has
appointed Mr John Hennesssy as an authorised
person to carry out an independent report
in relation to the various risks and implications
of the proposed incinerator to be located
on the Poolbeg peninsula.
In Ireland, bacterial contamination of
water is a national concern, with the Environmental
Protection Agency reporting that over 25%
of groundwater samples were contaminated with
E. coli in the 2004 to 2006 period.
The finalists for the 2010 Green Awards
have been announced, with a shortlist consisting
of a diverse range of companies and organisations
from across Irish society.
Hydrogeologist, Teri Hayes, has been announced
as President of the Irish Association of Hydrogeologists
(IAH Irish Group) - the organisation which
promotes and develops the science and engineering
of groundwater.
Beemune Ltd - a new company spun out from
NUI Maynooth - has been formed to tackle one
of the biggest threats to global food production
- the widespread disease and premature death
of the world's bee population.
Cork-based Alternative Maintenance Services
Ltd. was set-up to satisfy a growing demand
for an alternative, environmentally friendly
and low cost cleaning solution in many industries.
The Golden Eagle Trust has appealed to
farming organisations to tackle the issue
of illegal toxin use, following confirmation
that a ten-month-old Irish-born golden eagle
chick was poisoned in the northwest.
A renewable energy company is preparing
a planning application for a seawater pumped
hydroelectric energy scheme at Glinsk on the
north Mayo coastline.
The 30kph restrictions on Dublin City traffic
will remain in place following the failure
of Dublin City Council to agree changes or
a scrapping of the system.
Northern Ireland Enterprise Minister, Arlene
Foster has announced a £377,000 investment
by an Enniskillen-based renewable energy firm,
supported by Invest Northern Ireland.
Mr Turlough Breslan (54) of Maghery Road,
Portadown, was made the subject of a confiscation
order of £166,696.65 at Omagh Crown Court
under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.
Northern Ireland's Social Development Minister,
Margaret Ritchie visited a Downpatrick home
to see at first hand the benefits of the Warm
Homes Scheme.
Plans to build a new electricity generating
system, combining large-scale wind farms with
huge hydro-power storage reservoirs in valleys
on the west coast, are at an advanced stage,
The Irish Times has learned.
Former shareholders of Advanced Environmental
Solutions (AES) have reached a settlement
with Bord na Móna over outstanding claims
by the energy company in relation to its €61
million acquisition of the firm.
Renewal energy group NTR will not participate
in an $80 million (€59m) share offering by
Green Plains Renewable Energy (GPRE), which
will result in NTR’s stake falling from 45
per cent to around under 40 per cent, it is
understood.
The new mayor for Dublin will be the main
driver of traffic-management plans - which
could include the introduction of congestion
charges - and transport plans for the capital.
The University of Ulster, with help from
an Irish rock star, is giving students the
chance to design the home of the future -
a self-sustainable house made entirely of
sustainable materials.
The Government last month published its
revised spending estimates for 2010 showing
that it will fork out €61 billion on
day-to-day spending - a 3pc fall on 2009.
Tony Killeen TD, Minister of State at the
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
has launched Ireland's proposals on the reform
of the Common Fisheries Policy.
A proposed deepwater container port at
Bremore in north Co Dublin may be moved farther
north to Gormanston, Co Meath, to avoid encroaching
on a neolithic complex of passage tombs.
IFA President John Bryan said that he would
be contacting the Minister for Agriculture
Brendan Smith immediately to highlight some
serious shortcomings that need to be addressed
in the new Agri-Environmental Scheme to replace
REPS, which the Department of Agriculture
is proposing.
The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries
and Food, Brendan Smith TD, has called for
a "joined-up" approach by the international
community to the twin challenges of fighting
hunger and dealing with climate change.
Figures published by the Irish Insurance
Federation (IIF) reveal that the combined
insured property cost of the November floods
and the January freeze stand at €541m.
Northern Ireland Environment Minister Edwin
Poots has outlined measures to bring about
the most sweeping reform of Northern Ireland’s
planning system for over 30 years.
Mr. John Gormley TD, Minister for the Environment,
Heritage and Local Government, addressed the
European Environment Bureau Law Group’s seminar
on Law and Law Enforcement for Biodiversity
Protection, held in the European Parliament’s
Dublin offices.
The Central Fisheries Board has secured
€1.5 million in funding from the European
Community (EC) under the Life+ programme to
control and eradicate invasive species in
Lough Corrib, The Grand Canal and in the Barrow
Navigation Line.
The minister in charge of the OPW has given
a commitment that €23 million will be set
aside to complete the second phase of a flood
relief project in Fermoy, Co Cork.
Dublin City Council is considering proposals
to create 'contraflow lanes' for cyclists,
allowing them to travel in either direction
on streets restricted to one-way for motor
vehicles.
NTR plc, the international renewable energy
group, has announced the results of a survey
of 130 senior business leaders of Fortune
500 companies on their attitudes towards climate
change.
Wales will host a number of pioneering
trials designed by WRAP (Waste & Resources
Action Programme) to investigate the commercial
potential for using BSI PAS 100 compost and
anaerobic digestate in new landscape and brownfield
regeneration projects.
British consumers are still thinking about
the price of the electronic goods they buy
rather than saving energy, according to a
survey commissioned by energy-saving technology
manufacturer Energenie.
The European Commission has adopted a Green
Paper which sets out options for a European
Union approach to the protection of forests
and to information about forest resources
and their condition.
Google Inc has developed a prototype for
a new mirror technology that could cut by
half the cost of building a solar thermal
plant, the company's green energy czar said.
The Green Economy Initiative (GEI) is designed
to assist governments in 'greening'
their economies by reshaping and refocusing
policies, investments and spending towards
a range of sectors - such as clean technologies,
renewable energies, water services, green
transportation, waste management, green buildings
and sustainable agriculture and forests.
A 'World Environment Organization',
similar to the World Trade Organization, could
be formed as part of environmental governance
reform, according to a meeting of environment
ministers decided.
The Scottish Government's high-profile
plan to establish the country as the world's
first 'zero waste society' has moved
a step forward with the launch of a new £5m
capital grant programme design to stimulate
the development of plastics recycling facilities.
The European Parliament's environment committee
has called on the European Commission to distribute
lists of member states that fail to properly
implement EU legislation on waste, water and
nature protection, arguing that the situation
had become "absurd".
The European Commission is set to propose
a strategy on clean and fuel-efficient cars
by May, followed later by an action plan to
help introduce green vehicles to the market.
Leading associations in the field of information
and communication technologies (ICT) have
teamed up to measure the sector's energy consumption
and coordinate action on deploying technologies
that contribute to the EU's climate and energy
goals.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc plans to massively
cut greenhouse gas emissions from its global
supply chain within five years - an effort
the retailer said is equivalent to taking
more than 3.8 million cars off the road for
a year.
Plans for the UK's first tidal energy farm
have moved a step closer to realisation after
engineering giant Siemens confirmed it has
joined the latest £4.8m funding round in Marine
Current Turbines (MCT).
The recent hype surrounding green IT has
left some smaller organisations wondering
what steps they can take to ensure initiatives
yield successful results.
A reusable bag firm is calling for tougher
fairtrade standards to certify that firms
go beyond ensuring farmers get paid fairly
and provide more evidence that they operate
ethical and sustainable supply chains.
Bloom Energy has unveiled its fuel cell
technology amid claims that the system can
support neighbourhoods and commercial campuses
with enough energy to effectively take them
off the grid.
Siemens, Europe's biggest engineering group,
could target component makers for takeovers
in its drive to become one of the top three
players in the wind energy sector.
It may be more famous for its canals than
its roads, but that has not stopped the city
of Amsterdam moving forward with plans to
establish itself as the global capital for
electric cars.
The British government is to give up to
£5,000 to anyone who buys an 'ultra-low
carbon' car from next year and will build
recharging hubs, according to the Department
of Transport.
The burning of solid urban waste, sludge
from water treatment plants and livestock
slurry could generate more than 7 percent
of Spain's electricity needs, according to
a new report.
Large British businesses will spend over
$5.3 billion on climate change initiatives
in 2010, up eight percent on the previous
year, according to a report by UK-based research
firm Verdantix.
WRAP’s (Waste & Resources Action Programme)
third international markets conference that
took place in London last month, gave the
clearest steer possible that quality matters
to the whole recycling industry supply chain
- and, alongside it, could stem market opportunities
for UK businesses.
Carbon dioxide emissions by companies regulated
under the European Union's Emissions Trading
Scheme fell by 11 percent last year in the
wake of the economic downturn, according to
analysts.
As part of Engineers’ Week, which took
place in February, groups of school students
travelled to attend an event to find out more
about renewable energy.
South and East Cork Area Development (SECAD)
and Cork Environmental Forum (CEF) in association
with Cork County Council will present 'Growing
Together' - a community food training
event.
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