Aldi, (Translated “Albrecht Discount”) Kickham St, Thurles, Co. Tipperary, [E41 YP28] Thurleshas ‘Deposit Return Scheme‘ machinery for empty Bottles & Cans, installed in advance of the February 2024 recycle deadline. Pic: G. Willoughby.
Ireland will soon be introducing a Deposit Return Scheme. In February 2024, when you buy a drink in a plastic bottle, aluminium or steel can that features the Re-turn logo, consumers will pay a small deposit in addition to the price of the drink. When you return your empty, undamaged container to any retail outlet, you will get your deposit back in full.
Convenient for Everyone: With return points all across Ireland, returning your Re-turn drinks containers couldn’t be easier. Anywhere that sells drinks with the Re-turn logo, must accept your empty, undamaged containers and refund your deposit in cash or against other purchases
Communities Together: Recycling is one of the most effective actions we can take as individuals and communities to tackle climate change. Working together with a common purpose, we can protect our communities and create a healthy and positive footprint for future generations.
Protecting our Environment: Internationally, Deposit Return Schemes have proven very successful in reducing litter. By placing a monetary value on these drinks containers, there is more incentive for consumers to return them, rather than littering our environment.
Economy Initiative: As a circular economy initiative, the new Deposit Return Scheme aims to move away from the ‘take make and dispose’ culture to one of returning valuable materials, and keeping them in the economy for as long as possible.
General Comment: Pity that only returns bearing the ‘Re-turn logo‘ are being accepted. No incentive for people to pickup empty cans already discarded across our Irish countryside.
Gardaí are advising motorists tonight to exert extreme care while travelling on the roads around Co. Tipperary, as hazardous driving conditions are being reported. Motorists are being asked to please slow down.
Vehicles travelling on the Mill Road, Thurles are particularly being warned to take extreme care as surface water is presently, despite no rain over the past week, continuing to flow out through gateways, unto a large part of the road surface.
Surface water flowing through gateways unto the Mill Road area of Thurles, Co. Tipperary. Pic. G. Willoughby
There has been a failure by Thurles Municipal District engineers over the past 2 years to clear the drains in this area.
Total failure, by Thurles Municipal District engineers, to clear drains despite being notifiedover the past 5 years. Pic. G. Willoughby
Due to promised temperatures of at least -2 tonight; the road surface in this area, is expected to become extremely icy; with schools reopening tomorrow, large volumes of traffic will attempt to use this area in an effort to avoid the town centre, altogether.
What is causing this sudden unprecedented excess surface water on the Mill Road, over the past 2 years has as yet not been identified.
This area is a natural flood-plain for the River Suir. Such natural flood-plains are increasingly being environmentally degraded and devalued. As a result of urbanisation and infrastructural development, natural flooding can result in the land surface becoming impermeable (watertight). Thus, natural drainage of water that once was allowed to pass through the soil and its numerous layers are often undermined by the construction of housing, the erection of pavements and tarmac surfaces, resulting in surface run-off, due to a sudden rapid increase in a river’s natural discharge. It should be noted that some 26 houses were granted planning permission and erected on the Mill Road, in the past 2 years and the contractor was allowed to exit the site, leaving all road drains compacted with muck from heavy machinery used.
Total failure, by Thurles Municipal District engineers, to undertake proper road repairsand surface drainageon Mill Road Thurles. Pic. G. Willoughby
Attempts to have one area of this road repaired, [View Here], on December 7th, 2023, resulted in a few shovels of cold tarmac, now rapidly vanishing, and a number of trenches being dug into the ditch, as shown in picture above.
Why in God’s name, do we continue to pay ‘Property Tax’, ‘Road Tax’ and ‘high salaries’, latter to officials, when we receive such poor response when it comes to maintaining essential services. It is becoming more evident that locally elected Councillors and their officials are no longer in control of Transport Infrastructure Ireland and the service they are supposed to supply.
Some 4 days ago, January 3rd, 2024, [View Here] on Thurles.info we highlighted the shocking state of Kickham Street’s road surface. We are delighted to report that on January 4th (and thankfully before school traffic returns) most of the multitude of potholes were filled. This work is also a very short-term safety measure, nevertheless same is to be welcomed. It is not, however, a long-term solution. Kickham Street’s full and thorough rehabilitation and resurfacing are imperative. This stretch of road accommodates huge volumes of traffic daily. Given the absence of a ring road and the deplorable state of the Mill Road alternative, (narrow driving conditions, potholes and severe flooding), there will be no decrease in traffic on this main route entering the town, that includes Kickham Street. Its maintenance and improvement is, therefore, a necessary priority and plans to initiate improvements should be implemented as soon as possible.
Those who remove their Christmas tree before January 6th, should be reminded of the old Irish rural pisheóg* which warns of imminent bad luck, if the 12 days of Christmas are not fully observed and celebrated. *Pisheóg – meaning witchcraft; fairy tale or aphorism, believed by many as being simply daft superstition.
So, daft superstition I hear you say! Still maybe it is better to be safe than sorry later, so observe December 6th (St. Nicholas Day), before dismantling those Christmas decorations.
Christmas trees are now being accepted free of charge at several recycling centres and civic amenity sites across Co. Tipperary. Those intending to avail of this facility are being advised to please check the opening hours of your local drop-off point, before taking your tree to be recycled.
Recycling Centre Addresses:
Parnell Street Car Park, Thurles. (Open 24/7) Donohill Recycling Centre, Donohill Cashel Civic Amenity Site, Cashel. Fair Green, Carrick-on-Suir Nenagh Recycling Centre, Nenagh. Roscrea Recycling Centre, Roscrea Templemore Town Park, Templemore.
Snowdrops began emerging, here in Thurles, Co. Tipperary, last week. Soon they will stand just 7–15cm high, while exhibiting beautiful white bell-shaped flowers on the end of erect stems, which in turn will be surrounded by two to three leaves.
Yes, Snowdrops are informing us that Spring is most definitely en routeto Co. Tipperary.
‘Snowdrop Time’
By English poetess, the late MrsMary Webb (1811-1927).
Ah, hush tread softly through the rime* For there will be a blackbird singing, or a thrush. Like coloured beads the elm buds flush All the trees dream of leaves and flower and light, And see, the northern bank is much more white, Than frosty grass, for now is snowdrop time. END
[*The little used word ‘Rime‘ is a type of ice that forms when the moisture in fog freezes suddenly.]
‘Extraordinary’ 315-million-year-old fossil sponge found near the Cliffs of Moher
An extraordinary new species of fossil sponge, dating back to a time when County Clare was located close to the Equator has been discovered in the rocks that make up the Cliffs of Moher, by Dr. Eamon Doyle, geologist for the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark.
The 315-million-year-old sponge, named Cyathophycus balori, is up to 50cm tall and is the largest known example of its kind anywhere in the world.
When it was alive the vase-shaped sponge featured a circular opening at the top surrounded by a ring of eyelash-like structures. It would have resembled the modern-day Venus Flower Basket sponge, which is found the Pacific Ocean and often features on deep sea wildlife documentaries.
The new species was named after the mythological giant Balor, whose eye wreaked havoc on his enemies when opened.
Commenting on his discovery, Dr. Doyle said, “This is an exceptionally large example of a type of fossil sponge that was previously only known from much older rocks elsewhere in the world. It is the first record of this type of fossil sponge from Ireland and its excellent preservation is highly unusual.”
He continued, “The sponge was originally composed of a rectangular meshwork of tiny spicules made of silica, held together by a thin organic membrane. When they die, they usually fall apart quickly, and often only scattered remains of the spicules are preserved as fossils, so I was delighted to find these largely intact specimens. The excellently preserved fossil dates back to a time when the Atlantic Ocean had not even started to form and what we now call County Clare was part of an earlier sea, located near the Equator,” explained Dr. Doyle. “Discoveries like this help us to promote awareness about the wonderful geological legacy we have on our doorstop here in County Clare and to encourage a new generation of palaeontologists, that is, geologists that specialise in the study of fossils to visit and learn more about the unique geology of Ireland’s west coast.”
The new discovery has been published in the latest edition of international geological journal Geobios, with the collaboration of lead author and international fossil sponge expert Dr. Joseph Botting and co-author Dr. Lucy Muir, both Honorary Research Fellows at National Museum Wales (Amgueddfa Cymru), who worked closely with Dr. Doyle.
According to Dr. Botting, “I was amazed to see the size and excellent state of preservation of this fossil; this was totally unexpected. This find offers important insights into the evolution of sponges and how some species can survive in niche environments where few other species can live. Finding such large and intact specimens is exceptional.”
Dr. Lucy Muir commented, “This is a wonderful find and reminds us that there are still new and interesting fossils to be found which help us understand the story of Life on Earth.”
Sponges are creatures with a very basic body plan, they do not have a nervous system or circulatory system, but they are very abundant and form an important part of our biodiversity today. They filter large volumes of water for microscopic organisms that they feed on.
Recent Comments