Waterford City & County Council have been directed by the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management that in light of the on-going Covid-19 National Emergency controlled burning of agricultural land by the agricultural community is no longer permitted until further notice.
The public should note that all notices informing Waterford City & County Council of controlled burning will not be accepted for the duration of this emergency and that they should refrain from all forms of controlled burning at this time.
Controlled burning calls will not be accepted by the Fire Service or 999/112 for the duration of this emergency and all forms of controlled burning should not be carried out during this time.
It should also be noted by the public that if a 999/112 call is received relating to any controlled burning event on their property, then the Fire Brigade will be mobilised to attend and extinguish the fire. All the costs associated with the attendance of the Fire & Rescue Service will be invoiced to the property owner.
This measure has been deemed necessary when Fire & Rescue Services resources may be stretched due to Covid-19 crisis and, at a time when Waterford City & County Council are trying to maintain essential staffing levels.
In response to the Taoiseach’s announcement of Friday 27th March, Waterford City and County Council have implemented the following measures:
With immediate effect from Monday 30th March 2020, all City and County Council offices are closed to members of the public until further notice, with the exception of Waterford Integrated Homeless Services at 28 Parnell Street, Waterford and some very limited public access, strictly by appointment, for certain housing services.
Phone lines will be manned on a 24/7 basis at 0761 102020 – Please note the out of hours service is for EMERGENCY COUNCIL SERVICES ONLY.
Waterford Integrated Homeless Services (WIHS) at 28 Parnell Street, Waterford will remain open during normal opening hours to deal with homeless emergencies. WIHS can be contacted directly at homelessservicesteam@waterfordcouncil.ie or on 0761 10 2499.
A dedicated Community Support Helpline – 0761 102020 – is operational in Waterford City and County Council to assist at risk members of the public in accessing non-emergency and non-medical supports and advice during the current public health emergency. The helpline is focused primarily on ensuring that vulnerable members of the community or those living alone can access deliveries of groceries, medicine and fuels. The confidential phone line service is being established by the new COVID-19 Waterford Community Response Forum, which includes over a dozen agencies and organisations.
Only priority services will continue to be maintained (e.g. water supply and wastewater services) as well as emergency response services (e.g. roads maintenance, public lighting and housing maintenance) together with minimal waste management/street cleansing services and a minimal parks maintenance service.
Waterford Fire Service will continue to operate as normal.
The Motor Tax Offices will be closed, however postal and online motor tax service will continue to operate.
Council staff will ensure a continuity of essential and critical service across our key operations and the Council’s Crisis Management Team will continue to meet on an ongoing basis.
General information on Council services can be accessed online and the Council is asking members of the public to avail of these services by:-
Dedicated community support helpline to be available from Monday
At the instigation of Minister Murphy a Covid-19 Community Response Forum will be put in place for each City and County and co-ordinated by the Local Authority in each case.
A dedicated community support helpline will be established in Waterford City and County Council to assist at risk members of the public in accessing non-emergency and non-medical supports and advice during the current public health emergency. The confidential phoneline service is being established by the new COVID-19 Waterford Community Response Forum, which includes over a dozen agencies and organisations. The helpline is focused primarily on ensuring that vulnerable members of the community or those living alone can access deliveries of groceries, medicine and fuels. The role of the Forum is to ensure that there is a coordinated community response and to enable all voluntary statutory agencies to collaborate in support of our communities and particularly of our most vulnerable members.
Included in the COVID-19 Waterford Community Response Forum will be:
Waterford City and County Council
Health Service Executive
An Garda Síochána
Waterford Area Partnership
Waterford Leader Partnership
ALONE
Waterford Local Link
Waterford Age Friendly Alliance
Waterford Public Participation Network (PPN)
Waterford GAA County Board
An Post
Other community, voluntary and sports representatives
The new phoneline is just one aspect of the Forum’s work. Its core aim is contributing to the community-wide effort to limit the spread of COVID-19. Waterford City and County Council, through this group, will ensure that the wide variety of groups working across the county and city to assist those in need, will do so in an organised, collaborative and targeted way. The Council’s COVID-19 Community Response Forum is there to ensure the very best use of the many resources assisting vulnerable persons with their daily needs at this unprecedented time, whether that is collecting medication, food shopping, social support and contact.
Chief Executive of Waterford City and County Council, Michael Walsh, explains “There are a number of agencies currently doing excellent work in delivering care to older and vulnerable people in our communities.These groups are currently operating independently of each other and our role in Waterford Council is to provide a targeted, integrated and coordinated approach to the delivery of these much needed services to our more vulnerable citizens across the City and County of Waterford during the COVID-19 pandemic. Waterford Council is ideally placed both statutorily and regionally to channel this great work and provide the governance structure in partnership with all stakeholders. This public health crisis has changed life for so many, and we are there to help with that change. Our own staff whose day-jobs have changed due to this crisis, will be a key resource in the management and operation of this community support programme along with our partner agencies/groups. Set to come into effect from Monday 30th March, we are providing a dedicated contact centre through our main contact number 0761 102020 with the lines open from 8:00am to 8:00pm seven days a week.”.
Contact details of this new service will be promoted on WLR, Waterford Council website www.waterfordcouncil.ie and our Twitter and Facebook pages. An information leaflet including the new freephone number and other information will be distributed around the city and county, particularly to vulnerable households, over the coming days.
Please follow the guidelines on MyWaste Ireland for handling personal or household rubbish, including how to properly maintain your bins.
If you are tested COVID-19 postive, put all your personal rubbish (waste) such as gloves, masks, wipes, tissues etc. into a bin bag and tie when almost full. Place this bag into a second bag, and tie a knot. Store the bag somewhere safe for 3 days and then put the bag into your wheelie bin for collection.
Waterford City and County Council have prepared a public lighting specification as a means of ensuring that all public lighting projects meets relevant design and installation standards.
The document is a guide for designers to implement best practice and provide a sustainable energy efficient public lighting installations in Waterford.
In line with the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection guidelines, it is now possible for Waterford City & County Council tenants and HAP customers to apply to have their rent reassessed.
All tenants seeking such a rent reduction due to loss of earnings or employment because of the Covid-19 pandemic, should scan/post a letter from their employer, confirming loss of income or employment to:
Postal address: Customer Service Desk, Bailey’s New Street, Waterford
This will allow us to begin re-assessments as quickly as possible. If there is a time lag in actually changing the rent payment, adjustments will be backdated. We would stress the importance of tenants continuing to pay rent until the reassessment is complete.
Following consultation with the Mayors and the Cathaoirligh , WCCC wish to advise that the Council Plenary meetings, All Municipal & Metropolitan District meetings and SPC meetings scheduled up to and including the 29th March 2020 are now cancelled.
Matters will be reviewed in the next couple of weeks to establish arrangements for meetings than can be consistent with the social distancing requirements outlined in HSE/Government advice.
Waterford, as the Capital of the South East will be a vibrant and sustainable place for all its people who live, work, visit or invest here.
OUR VISION
That Waterford is ambitious, progressive, and connected. A place
where all our people enjoy life, well-being and opportunity at its
heart.
That Waterford people have access to a responsive, professional and
people focused local authority which is connected at a strategic level
to the wider public service.
That Waterford and the South East are positioned to lead in terms of
business development, economic growth and educational excellence.
That Waterford offers a unique quality of life for all with outstanding
world class amenities and a natural unspoiled landscape and scenery and become a recognised tourism destination which honours its cultural and
historic heritage as Ireland’s Oldest City.
Waterford Integration Services, Waterford Europe Direct Information Centre, Waterford Libraries, Waterford Cultural Quarter and Waterford City and County Council are coming together to host a Global Women’s Conference on Tuesday 10 March in Garter Lane Arts Centre from 9am to 4pm to coincide with International Women’s Day Events.
On the day delegates can join local and global speakers, women activists, academics, policy makers and community leaders. The conference will invite all speakers and delegates to participate in the important dialogue of Migrant Women and the Sustainable Development Goals.
Anne Nolan from Waterford Integration Services explains: “Our focus at local level is on empowering women as key actors of Integration and Economic Development as a direct response to our commitment to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals in Waterford and the South-East. We collaborate on issues affecting Migrant women and their families by highlighting inequalities and social exclusion, policy development and research, education, income poverty, women and health, politics and decision-making, combating racism and discrimination as well as women and human rights.”
Speakers will include Lelini Veerassamy CEO of International Organisation for Migration, Osas Usideme, Intercultural Health Hub, Sarah Franklyn, Coalition 2030, Tulowani Akaehomen, Businesswoman and Author, Margaret Ward, journalist, Obianuju Eckedoze, Chair of the Waterford Migrant Forum, Marie Taylor, Limerick Institute of Technology and Her Excellency Dr. Uzoma Elizabeth Emenike, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Mayor of the Waterford Metropolitan District Cllr. Breda Brennan will open the conference.
The day will also include mini cultural moments including storytelling by Carine Mambou, Rangoli, a south Indian art form, in which patterns are created for luck, health and happiness, Red Sand Project – participatory community art to highlight victims of human trafficking that fall through the cracks in our global system.
There will also be information stands from Waterford Europe Direct Information Centre, South East Business Innovation Centre, Access I.T., Waterford Social Enterprise Network and Work Matters – Supports for Business & Employment at your Library.
Sunday 8 March is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality.
The Conference will take place at Garter Lane Arts Centre, O’Connell Street, which is located in Waterford’s Cultural Quarter. Tickets are free but booking is essential via eventbrite – search for ‘Global Women’s Conference’ or contact Central Library on 0761 10 2975 for more information.
A Single Use Plastics Policy was adopted at the recent meeting of the Plenary Council on 13th February. This policy will result in the elimination of single use plastics from all Council buildings, hired venues, catering and all events organised by Waterford City & County Council.
In addition, all events licensed or funded by Waterford City & County Council will be required to demonstrate measures to eliminate single use plastics and segregation of waste during and after the event and their subsequent disposal.
Following a draft prepared by the SPC for Environment, Climate Action and Biodiversity, the policy was brought to the Plenary Council where it was adopted, with immediate effect.
“Plastic is designed to last forever but is often used just once. Single-use plastic includes products such as straws, bottles, cups and cutlery; any plastic item that’s made for temporary use”, said Fergus Galvin, Director of Services for Roads, Water and Environment.
“Although we might not think much of it when we buy bottles of our favorite drink or buy a sandwich in a plastic box, these choices have a serious impact on the health of our planet and ourselves. This policy enables us to say a firm ‘no’ to single use plastics in our organisation. We are now building on the existing ban on single use bottles and cups in the Council Chambers by extending a ban on all single use plastics across the range of Council buildings and events.”
ENDS
Background: In January 2018, the European Commission adopted the first-ever Europe-wide strategy on plastics. The strategy envisages that all plastic packaging on the EU market will be recyclable by 2030, the consumption of single-use plastics will be reduced and the intentional use of micro plastics will be restricted. This strategy will transform the way products are designed, produced, used, and recycled in the EU. One of the first key legislative proposals to emerge on foot of the EU Plastics Strategy was the “Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment”, which was published on 28 May 2018.
In January 2019, the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and the Environment, Minister Richard Bruton T.D. announced that government departments, public bodies, and schools will lead the way in the response to cutting down on single use plastics, with a number of measures, including no longer purchasing single-use plastic cups, cutlery and straws for use within their offices.
The single-use plastics directive which was adopted in May 2019 builds on the EU’s existing waste legislation but goes further by setting stricter rules for those types of products and packaging which are among the top ten most frequently found items polluting European beaches. The new rules ban the use of certain throwaway plastic products for which alternatives exist. In addition, specific measures are introduced to reduce the use of the most frequently littered plastic products. Ireland has supported the ambition of this proposal throughout all the negotiations.
NOTICE OF DEPOSIT OF RATE BOOKS FOR INSPECTION AND INTENTION TO MAKE RATE FOR 2020
NOTICE is hereby given that Waterford City & County Council will make a Municipal Rate on the property rateable in the City & County of Waterford.
The annual rate on valuation for the service of the year ending 31st December 2020 on all rateable property within Waterford City and County Council’s administrative area is 0.2648.
The Rate Books are deposited for inspection by any ratepayer in the Customer Care Office, Baileys New Street, Waterford and in the Customer Care Office, Dungarvan, Co. Waterford and will be open for inspection between the hours of 9.30 a.m. – 4.00 p.m. excluding Saturdays and Sundays during the fourteen days from the 5th of February 2020.
Esri’s digital mapping technology used by local authority to manage housing, planning, finance, property management, roads, environment and customer service
Tech is enabling Council to complete double the number of housing inspections per year
Council has created a number of engaging story maps to promote tourism in the region
Dublin/Waterford, 27th January 2020 – Esri Ireland, the market leader in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), today announces that Waterford City and County Council has implemented Esri’s digital mapping software to help improve the delivery of local government and public services to more than 116,000* citizens in Waterford.
Esri’s GIS solutions are helping to digitally transform Waterford Council, by moving it away from many paper-based processes and leading to numerous efficiencies and benefits. The technology is being rolled out across many areas of the organisation, to help the Council to manage the wide range of services it delivers. These include housing, planning, finance, property management, roads, environment and customer service.
Pictured at the announcement that Waterford City and County Council has implemented Esri’s digital mapping technology to improve public services are (L-R): Dermot OKane, Head of Sales, Esri Ireland; Michael Walsh, CEO, Waterford City & County Council; and Jon Hawkins, GIS Projects Leader, Waterford City & County Council.
Esri’s digital mapping platform integrates with Waterford Council’s systems, transforming the way it manages numerous functions, such as housing and planning applications. Employees in the planning department have used the digital mapping platform to make faster and more informed decisions on 4,400 planning applications to date – based on easy access to accurate and complete information covering the entire county.
The mobile functionality of the technology is also transforming how the Council manages social housing throughout Waterford. Employees can now collect data in the field using smartphones and tablets with information immediately accessible in the main office, enabling it to complete double the number of housing inspections carried out each year.
Additionally, the mapping platform helps Waterford citizens to have a more active role in their social housing application. Applicants for choice based lettings can now view the location of properties they are interested in, as well as nearby amenities, all from online.
Waterford Council is benefitting from far greater efficiencies by digitising these previously paper-based processes. For example, the environment team have used the technology to complete more than 1,250 litter quantity and pollution surveys, removing unnecessary administration and the duplication of data to achieve an 80% time saving.
Waterford Council is also creating a number of publicly accessible interactive maps to make local information readily available and boost tourism in the region. Last year, approximately 790,000 overseas and domestic tourists visited Waterford, contributing more than €160 million to the local economy.
The maps developed by Waterford Council showcase attractions and upcoming events throughout the county, helping to attract more tourists to the area. One such series of maps explores the Waterford Greenway, a 46 kilometre off-road cycling and walking train along the old railway line from Waterford city to Dungarvan. Visitors can use the map on or offline to easily view car parks, bike hire shops, toilet facilities and highlights along the route, as well as viewing the local weather forecast.
Dermot O’Kane, Head of Sales, Esri Ireland, commented: “It’s great to see Waterford City & County Council embrace GIS throughout the authority. Councils across Ireland can leverage digital mapping to light up the data in their organisation – making information easily accessible for both their own staff and the wider public. While staff can make better decisions, complete tasks faster, study patterns and plan accordingly, the people of Waterford are also benefitting through improved access to local information and rich story maps highlighting the fantastic activities and attractions found across their county.”
Michael Walsh, CEO, Waterford City & County Council, said: “Waterford City & County Council is a local authority with responsibility for delivering local government and services to local businesses, citizens and visitors to Waterford. Esri’s GIS system has become a really important tool for us in terms of the effectiveness, the speed and hopefully the quality of decision-making within the Council.”
-Ends-
*Population of Waterford city and county is 116,176 according to CSO, 2016.
See: census link
