Bat workshop May 26th

Saturday May 26th

From Andrew Harrington, MISE Project :

Bat monitoring workshop on Saturday the 26th of May with Bat Conservation Ireland in the Ramada Hotel in Waterford.The workshop will be free but places are limited to thirty, so anyone interested will have to book a place. Anyone who’s interested can contact aharrington@waterfordcoco.ie or 086-4135544/051-395502 for queries and bookings.

We’re hoping that people who attend the workshop might also be interested in volunteering to help with bat monitoring surveys that Bat Conservation Ireland are running this summer. I’ll also be organising further workshops and surveys with BCIreland on bats over the summer, so I’ll keep you posted about those.

To celebrate International Biodiversity Day, the Mammals in a Sustainable Environment (MISE) Project and Waterford County Council are organising a talk on “Waterford’s Hidden Wildlife” at 7pm on Tuesday the 22nd of May in the Central Library, Dungarvan, Co. Waterford. This evening event is free and all are welcome.

For more details on the MISE project and forthcoming events, check out this link.

Sand-lubbers at Work

Photos from IWT/AOL Volunteer day on May 7th at Tramore Sand Dunes.

25 conservation enthusiasts took to the dunes at 9 am yesterday morning to try to stabilise the dunes, which are under threat from weather, ocean, trampling, quadbiking etc. They came fromn Waterford-based company, AOL and along with Irish Wildlife Trust members and Education Officer Andrew, and Andy from Conservation Services (contractor working for Waterford County Council on this project) to transplant marram grass, lay protective mesh and clear up litter.

Blow-outs (areas without any grass or plants) are part of the process of erosion in which the exposed sand is vulnerable to the effects of wind etc, which can simply blow the dunes away, wiping out the homes of a large variety of insects, birds, mammals and plants which inhabit the area. And destroying a valuable amenity in this case. Marram Grass plays a key role in dune stabilisation, by "binding" the sand grains together, and by causing more sand to accumulate, leading to conditions which support other plant life and consequently, a stable dune. Mesh reduces the blow-off in exposed areas of sand. Tramore Dunes are part of an SAC (Special Area of Conservation # 000671. see www.npws.ie for more information) and need intervention if they are to survive in the present form. The area has been fenced off to allow the grass to regenerate.

You can see that it was a sunny bluesky day and really great fun - what you can't see in the photos was the million grains of sand that got into hair, ears, noses, the kelley-kettle.... The wind was almost overpowering - litterpickers almost turned into kitesurfers over the Baldy Man when wind got into sacks!

But this was a determined and hardy group of people who stuck at the task till 4pm and great progress could be seen when we finally loaded up the tools and headed for home.

Bernie Guest, Waterford County Heritage Officer afterwards expressed her appreciation for the work to all involved.

We wouldn't like to see all the work wasted, so we're calling for everyone who goes there to respect the dunes, the fencing, avoid walking and report quadbiking (which is illegal) to Gardai (051 391620), Waterford County Council (051 39555) or The Wildlife Ranger (087 8541961).

This was the 3rd collaboration between AOL and IWT Waterford Branch, which has seen some useful voluntary work completed and there are plans to do more in July. We are also looking at the possiblity of setting up a regular conservation group to keep up the work on the dunes and other areas. For information, email Marie - marpower@eircom.net

If you are interested in doing some practical conservation further afield, and perhaps taking an active summer holiday, 2 volunteering options are:

In Killarney Woods, clearing Rhodedendron - 1 week June, July or August (www.groundwork.ie or www.iwt.ie) or on Clare Island, clearing Gunnera - 2 weeks - last week August and 1st week September.

Thanks to Sandra, from Dublin's Volunteer Group - the Grubby Gang - for these photos.

Oilspill Nears Coast?

Press Release

Feb 27th, 2009

Oil Spill - An Uncoordinated Approach Will Lead to Loss of Wildlife.

In light of the recent oil spill off the south coast of Ireland, the Irish Wildlife Trust have contacted various government departments and Local Authorities to find out what the plan of action is to deal with the oil spill if it reaches the Irish coast. Unfortunately after contacting various departments the lines of action are not clearly defined, a very worrying situation indeed.

The Coastguard in the Department of Communications Energy and Natural Resources believe the oil slick will not come ashore and currently they are monitoring the slick on a daily basis with helicopters. This is not an exact science and could change over time. A question that is harder to answer is; what happens if oil does come ashore? The oil might not come ashore immediately it might take weeks before the effects are seen. The Coastguard indicated Local Authorities are responsible for clean up operations and should have pollution plans in place. However, we know for instance Waterford County Council among others do not have a pollution plan, so what happens next?

The Coastguard have anti-pollution equipment, including bunds, to boom off oils slicks if it gets close to the shore but it is unclear if this is enough. The equipment is located in Dublin and at local sites and is under the charge of the Coastguard Pollution and Salvage manager but if the slick breaks up, it is not clear how many bays could be boomed off simultaneously as there is no published plan to consult.

In the event of oil reaching the shore the first signs of damage the public would see would be tar balls on beaches or oiled birds. In such circumstances we would advise the public report directly to the Coastguard. LoCall no. 1890 44 9900 and to the local County Council.

‘Our coastal region is invaluable for wildlife and humans alike, species such as seals, whales and dolphins, and coastal colonies of sea birds depend on a clean environment to survive,’ commented Padraic Fogarty (IWT Chairperson).

The south of Ireland holds many Special Areas of Conservation such as the Tramore Backstrand, Bannow Bay and Clonakilty Bay to name a few, not mention Special Protection areas for birds like the Saltee Islands 4 kilometres off the coast of Wexford. In this time of economic uncertainty the impact that this spill could have on our fisheries would be disastrous and have a serious impact on the livelihood of many involved in fisheries.

Even if the oil spill does not reach the Irish shores, there is still a serious need for relevant authorities to work together with a coordinated approach involving communities to help protect our beautiful coastal wildlife in the future.

Contact:

For further information please contact Joanne Pender

IWT Development Officer Ph: 01 860 2839 or E-mail: enquiries@iwt.ie