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Environmental Campaigns

By Waterford City & County Council

2x Tidy Towns webinars : United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

Waterford City and County Council is hosting two additional FREE Tidy Towns related webinars in 2021. Top tips in how to succeed in the competition will be on offer for community groups, organisations, and individuals who register.

The aim is to support groups with their ongoing work in their Tidy Towns groups along with advice for their application for the 2021 national competition.

The next two webinars will focus on sustainability category and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (new to the competition this year) and also on writing the application itself. Due to Covid restrictions this year judges will not be able to visit your town/village and so your judging will be based solely on your application form. This means that it is more important than ever to showcase all of your work to the judges via your application form. Hear advice about how to gain marks for your work through your application form alone.

Sustainability – Doing More with Less

7pm on Monday 22nd March

Register for this event: https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/sustainability-doing-more-with-less-tickets-143106093177

TidyTowns Adjudicator Debbie Nesbitt

Writing the Application

7pm, Tuesday 13th April

Register for this event:  https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/143281024401

TidyTowns Adjudicator Fiona MacGowan

By Waterford City & County Council

Let Dandelions Bee!

Let Dandelions Bee!

A campaign to let dandelions bloom for a short few weeks to help feed bees this Spring. They are our wild bees’ most favourite food. Help halt the bee decline by simply leaving dandelions to grow in your garden this March and April. The best way to help our bees this year is to do nothing! For more information, see www.letdandelionsbee.ie or https://pollinators.ie/resources

The competition is to take a photo of dandelions in bloom and send it to letdandelionsbee@gmail.com, like and share this post. Closing date: 5pm 30th April 2021. Prize: the winner can choose either a €100 Dungarvan Chamber gift voucher or €100 Waterford Chamber gift voucher.

By Waterford City & County Council

Biodiversity on Your Doorstep series – Learning from Nature

Biodiversity on Your Doorstep – Learning from Nature

22nd – 26th February. All events Free and online

Discover biodiversity in your own back yard whether it is in your own garden, the local Nature Park or Greenway. Learn how to protect and improve our local ecosystems. Join Europe Direct, Waterford, Waterford Libraries and Waterford Environmental Department for a week of FREE events from 22 – 26 February. All Events are online.

For more information check out www.waterfordlibraries.ie/biodiversity-on-your-doorstep

The EU’s biodiversity strategy for 2030 is a comprehensive, ambitious and long-term plan to protect nature and reverse the degradation of ecosystems. The strategy aims to put Europe’s biodiversity on a path to recovery by 2030, and contains specific actions and commitments.

It is the proposal for the EU’s contribution to the upcoming international negotiations on the global post-2020 biodiversity framework. A core part of the European Green Deal, it will also support a green recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Keynote

Giving your Garden back to Nature – A Talk by Mary Reynolds

Monday 22 February 7pm – 8pm

Join Mary Reynolds, Chelsea Gold medal winning Irish landscape designer, bestselling author and nature activist who encourages us to change the way you think as a gardener. Stop fighting nature and go against the controlling instinct and instead encourage those weeds, encourage untidiness, encourage life to return. The more biodiversity you can establish in your patch of earth, the more complex a food web that is restored.

Booking:

https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/giving-your-garden-back-to-nature-a-talk-by-mary-reynolds-tickets-140064224867

Webinars

Bees, Birds & Trees – Biodiversity & Waterford Council

Tuesday 23 February 11am – 12noon

Join staff from Waterford City & County Council who will tell us about Kilbarry Nature Park, planting for biodiversity, actions to help pollinators, opportunities for schools and Tidy Town Groups as well as the Let the Dandelions Bee Campaign and some exciting Biodiversity Projects planned for 2021.

Waterford City & County Council Panel:

Ella Ryan, Environmental Awareness Officer, Bernie Guest, Heritage Officer, Eoin Dullea, Horticulturist.

Claire Hartley, Head of Communications (Chair)

Booking: https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/bees-birds-trees-biodiversity-waterford-council-tickets-140106740031

Discover the new Digital Wildlife of Ireland Map!

Wednesday 24 February 11am – 12noon

Neil Tarrant, along with Mairéad Ní Chiaruáin, is the co-creator of Ireland’s first Digital Wildlife Map! This new online learning tool has been created especially for primary school students to help them and their families learn about the wildlife they can help protect in their communities. The interactive map is a fun way to learn all about the birds, mammals and fish native to Ireland. Children can explore the island of Ireland at home on the phone, tablet or computer, learn about which species are native to which areas, and test their knowledge with quizzes as they complete activities.

With everyone staying home during the current restrictions, and home-schooling ongoing, the Digital Wildlife of Ireland Map offers another resource for parents to engage children in learning and is accessible to anyone with an internet connection and a device. The map can be accessed on the Libraries Ireland website at www.nature.librariesireland.ie.

Booking:

https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/discover-the-new-wildlife-of-ireland-map-tickets-139955642093

Learn how to spot Spring Flowers and become a Citizen Scientist with Oisín Duffy from the Waterford’s National Biodiversity Data Centre

Friday 26 February 11am – 12noon

Discover how to spot 20 easily identifiable spring flowers and how you can become a Citizen Scientist and learn how to record your findings and contribute to furthering plant conservation in Ireland. Also find out more about the National Biodiversity Data Centre which is based in Waterford and how Biodiversity data is a key requirement for understanding our natural surroundings.

Booking:

https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/learn-how-to-spot-spring-flowers-and-become-a-citizen-scientist-tickets-139945491733

By Waterford City & County Council

Munster students invited to learn more about water with new Stay Home resources

February 4, 2021 – Green-Schools, in partnership with Irish Water, are supporting students and their families during lock-down with a series of Stay Home resources aimed at helping them learn more about water, one of our most fascinating and precious resources.

With students and their parents adapting to the challenges of home schooling, these online resources are designed to be fun, entertaining and easily accessible. From water-themed videos to quizzes, experiments and much more, there is a host of activities for students of all ages to enjoy doing at home.

The programme includes 13 weeks of activities targeted to three different age categories of Junior Primary (Infants to 2nd Class), Senior Primary (3rd to 6th class) and Secondary School. So there is something for all age groups to enjoy and learn from.

All the experiments are designed to be simple enough to carry out at home using easily available materials. For example, students can learn all about how evaporation works using just some empty jam jars, a saucer, paper, scissors and a marker. Or they can make their own water filter with an old plastic bottle, sand and gravel.

Other activities include a chance to view chapters from The Story of Water, a documentary that focuses on the critical value of this precious natural resource and explores the ongoing threats to its future – both globally and in Ireland. Chapters included in the Stay Home resources cover topics such as water treatment, pollution and wastewater.

Irish Water’s sponsorship of the Green-Schools Water Theme is in its eighth year and in that time over 2,000 schools have attended interactive Water Workshops and Walk for Water Events. Last year alone, Green-Schools saved over 600 million litres of water. As well as running workshops and Water Ambassador training for students in participating schools, Green-Schools also runs an annual poster and video competition on a water theme. Due to Covid 19 restrictions and school closures, the Green-Schools programme has successfully moved much of its interaction online for the current school year, with new content and innovative virtual events.

Cathy Baxter, Green-Schools Manager, said: “With home schooling now the norm for the vast majority of students and their parents we are pleased to be able to do our bit to help by providing these free resources to help everyone learn more about water and how precious it is. Since making the Stay Home resources available via the Green-Schools website and on social media we have had an incredible response from all over the country. So far close to 10,000 people have engaged with the Stay Home water resources alone online”.

Colm Ward, Irish Water’s Regional Communication Specialist, added: “We are delighted to partner with the Green-Schools Water Programme in supporting students and their families at this time. Irish Water is proud to be sponsoring the Green-Schools Water Theme for the eighth year in a row – a programme which has seen tens of thousands of Irish students learn more about the value of water and how we can all help to safeguard this precious resource for the future.”

The Green-Schools Stay Home activities are available on the Green-Schools website at https://greenschoolsireland.org/green-schools-stay-home-water/. They can also be found on the Green-Schools social media channels with the hashtag #GreenSchoolsStayHome. The Story of Water documentary is available to view in its entirety or as individual chapters on the Irish Water website at www.water.ie/storyofwater

ENDS

By Waterford City & County Council

‘Stories from the Waterside’ website launch

‘Stories from the Waterside’ was a national story writing competition, organised LAWPRO in partnership with The Heritage Council and the Heritage Officers Programme, Waterways Ireland and Inland Fisheries Ireland.  It celebrates the connection between people and their local waterbodies through stories. Entries were received from across Ireland in both English and Irish. In total there was almost 500 entries in the competition, which ran throughout the period of the first COVID-19 lockdown The winning stories were published in a book called ‘Stories from the Waterside’.

The new website, which will be launched on Tuesday 02 February, will provide ongoing access to this unique collection of stories. Details of event are as follows:

Event:             ‘Stories From The Waterside’ online readings and reflections (in Irish & English) from the national story writing competition and launch of new dedicated website with all the stories.

Date:                Tuesday, 2nd Feb 2021 (World Wetlands Day)
Time:               7pm
Register:         https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/world-wetlands-day-2021-tickets-137399318059

The event will include readings and reflections on our local waterbodies and will see the launch of a new website to capture all the stories entered into the story writing competition. It will make all the stories available on a theme / county basis and the association with a local water body. The event is free to attend and open to all but registration is required (see above link).

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By Waterford City & County Council

Waterford Council Celebrates World Wetlands Day

This year celebrates  the 50th anniversary of  the Ramsar Convention  on Wetlands -the first modern day environmental treaty signed in Iran on February 2nd in 1971. The Ramsar Convention was established to raise awareness about the value of wetlands  in our environment. Two of Ireland’s 45 Ramsar Sites are in Waterford– Dungarvan Harbour and Tramore Bay.

You  can also put your photographic skills to the test and enter the Irish Ramsar Wetlands  Committee Photo Competition.  Find out  more on irishwetlands.ie

By Waterford City & County Council

Primary school litter-picking programme inspiring and empowering the next generation of environmentalists

Inspiring young environmentalists, one litter picking adventure at a time

Primary school children in Waterford are taking a stand against litter in their area, through a unique school based litter-picking programme called Picker Pals. The programme, run by environmental NGO VOICE (Voice of Irish Concern for the Environment) motivates and equips children with “Picker Packs” containing everything children need to go litter-picking. At the end of Picker Pals’ first year in operation, 6 Waterford schools, along with 109 schools from 9 different local authority areas are involved in the programme. “VOICE is delighted that Waterford City and County Council are funding the programme locally and supporting this very exciting journey, which aims to see a Picker Pack in every classroom in the country over the coming years,” says Mindy O’Brien Co-ordinator of VOICE.

Using upcycled and fully reusable packaging, Picker Pals provide each classroom with bespoke story and activity books, in both Irish and English, and picker-uppers which are taken home by a different child every week. Each child goes on a litter-picking adventure in their local area with their family and reports back to their classmates on their activity.  The Picker Pals song helps spread the message about tackling litter in a fun and upbeat manner to motivate children to get involved in this important social and environmental issue. “It’s not just about learning about litter. It’s not just about becoming aware of litter. It’s about actually getting out there and picking up litter. Picker Pals gets children onto the first rung of the environmental ladder,” says Patrick Jackson, Picker Pals Creator.

Since the start of the pandemic, there has been a marked increase in the amount of litter in our towns and cities. Waterford City and County Council are working hard to address the issue of litter. “We make litter picking equipment available throughout the year to schools, community groups and individuals carrying out a clean-up of their local area. The Picker Pals programme supplements our litter programme and has been especially valuable during the last few months. It has helped to strengthen our environmental message in schools at a time when we are unable to visit them ourselves. It also helps children to understand how they can make simple, positive changes in their own neighbourhood. The initiative is not about cleaning up the whole neighbourhood but to pick up a few items of litter and engage in conversation around the issue of littering,” said Ella Ryan, Environmental Awareness Officer at Waterford City and County Council.

St Mary’s Primary School in Dungarvan is seeing many of the same benefits. “The girls in our school are really enjoying being involved in the Picker Pals programme. They are very keen to play their part in looking after their local environment and are having great fun with their families while doing so. We are delighted to be part of this great new programme,” said Fiona Fitzgerald, Principal at St. Mary’s.

Despite the fact that schools are out for the next few weeks, Picker Pals can still provide the perfect break from online learning and home schooling. Litter-picking can become part of people’s home schooling experience and give everyone a good reason to get out of the house, to get some fresh air, and to make the world better.

Litter-picking can provide many benefits. In Waterford, the combination of the council and concerned groups’ actions sees Waterford City ranked 8th in terms of cleanliness out of 37 towns and cities across Ireland, in the latest IBAL litter survey.  Angela Kenny, Picker Pals Project Manager talks about other benefits from litter-picking activities. “Litter-picking can have a really positive impact on our mental health and wellbeing, getting people out of the house, relieving stress and anxiety and giving a great sense of achievement and empowerment. It is a perfect lockdown activity.”

By Waterford City & County Council

Recycling of natural Christmas trees

Natural Christmas Trees will be accepted for recycling free of charge at Kilbarry, Waterford, Civic Amenity Site and at Ballinamuck, Dungarvan, Civic Amenity Site until 9th January 2021.

By Waterford City & County Council

Recycling of natural Christmas trees

Natural Christmas Trees will be accepted for recycling free of charge at Kilbarry, Waterford, Civic Amenity Site and at Ballinamuck, Dungarvan, Civic Amenity Site until 9th January 2021.

By Waterford City & County Council

“Paint Smarter” with mywaste.ie

Stop wasting money on excess paint with these 10 simple tips

Every year we in the South East waste hundreds of Euros buying excess paint.

So often we buy the wrong type, colour or amount because we all think that “bigger is better value” and we will definitely use that paint again.

Seriously, how many times have you gone to the shed or garage and stumbled over stacks of half-empty paint cans that seem to magically multiply every year?

Or do you stand in your local paint shop, scratching your head when asked: “So, how much paint do you need?”

If you have answered yes to any of these questions you need to know about Paint Smarter.

Paint is a frequent but preventable type of waste brought to recycling centres across the South East.  Over purchasing seems to be a likely culprit as well as the lack of knowledge about storing leftover paint correctly.

And don’t forget – painting your room will work out even cheaper if you don’t waste paint!

This has prompted the “Paint Smarter” campaign, a collaboration between Waterford, Kilkenny and Carlow Local Authorities to devise 10 top tips on how to avoid wasting your money on paint.

Deciding to give a room a lick of paint is a daunting task for most of us and something that we put off as long as we can.

The Paint Smarter tips can have you shaping up for home improvements that would even amaze Dermot Bannon!

Calculating the amount of paint needed is easy if you use an online paint calculator, but if maths isn’t your strong point, just bring your room measurements (length by breath) to your local paint shop and they’ll gladly assist you with your purchase.

It’s always important to minimise the amount of time that your paint is left exposed to the air, so as you paint, only pour only what you need into your tray and put the lid back on the tin straight away. Make sure you wipe the excess, the bits that dribble down the side of the tin, to avoid compromising the rest of the paint.

The Painting Smarter campaign will not only teach you how to avoid wasting money but will also provide you with lots of tools and tips to make the most of what you buy.

Keep an eye on the social media pages of your local authority for great advice from Marianne the “Revamp Tramp” ” a renowned furniture up-cycler from Waterford who has joined forces with the campaign. She has plenty of top tips for anyone using paint in furniture upcycling projects to help us all to stop being a waster and learn to paint smarter.

Beat is also on board and will be reminding you all to think before you paint as well as having THREE €100 One4All vouchers up for grabs! So before you take on a Christmas project check out the Paint Smarter tips at mywaste.ie. See www.epa.ie for additional information.

By Waterford City & County Council

Vote for Kilbarry Nature Park in the People’s Choice Awards 2020

Help Kilbarry Nature Park become the world’s favourite Green Flag Award park by voting for it in the People’s Choice Awards 2020 at https://www.greenflagaward.org/park-summary/?park=3821

Kilbarry Nature Park received two Green Flag Awards in September and was the first remediated landfill to win this award. This award scheme is an international mark of quality which recognises the efforts of local community engagement with green space involvement.

Kilbarry Nature Park is a safe, secure and accessible amenity in the heart of Waterford City which encompasses an integrated wetland, wildflower meadows, Kilbarry Bog and promotes good practice in the management of native flora and fauna. A former municipal landfill site, the area has been re-mediated to create a popular space for the community.

By Waterford City & County Council

New Campaign calls for citizens to fight against Illegal Dumping & Fly Tipping

New Communications Campaign calls for all Citizens to get involved in the Fight Against Illegal Dumping and Fly Tipping in Ireland.

– There has been an 11% increase in the number of calls reporting illegal dumping during the Covid 19 pandemic.

Every county, city, town and village across Ireland is being called upon to join the fight against illegal dumping through a new communications campaign, “Your Country – Your Waste”, launched on Friday November 13, 2020, by the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan TD.

The “Your Country – Your Waste” campaign has been developed as part of the 2020 Anti-Dumping Initiative,* and includes a tailored suite of information and awareness messaging for use by Local Authorities, community and voluntary groups during 2020 and into 2021. It will begin with a week-long social media campaign on mywaste.ie’s** social media platforms.

Speaking at the launch Minister Ryan said, “Earlier this year, my Department provided €3 million for the 2020 National Anti-Dumping Initiative which will fund over 300 projects to tackle the problem of illegal dumping. Illegal dumping negatively impacts our communities, destroys our environment and costs significant exchequer funding to remove. The “Your Country – Your Waste” campaign delivers on a commitment made in the enforcement chapter of the recently-published Waste Action Plan for a Circular Economy. It will highlight relevant contact numbers and email addresses to help make it easy for people to report illegal dumping. The campaign will enhance collaboration between the public and the relevant authorities on awareness raising and in taking action.”

There has been an 11% increase in the number of calls reporting illegal dumping during the Covid 19 pandemic. This year, €1 million of the Anti -Dumping Initiative allocation was ring fenced to deal with particular issues arising from the Covid-19 crisis. The increase in the number of reports received through the National Complaints Procedure by city and county councils indicates that people do not want illegal dumping or fly tipping in their counties, cities, towns, villages or countryside and are willing to assist in combatting this behaviour.

Nicholas Bond, Coordinator for WERLA***, Southern Region said, “As illegal dumping complaints are on the rise, the public are encouraged to inform Local Authorities of instances of illegal dumping activity, which can then be followed up and investigated thoroughly.

“Materials produced as part of this campaign, will be utilised by both local authorities and local and voluntary community groups and will visually highlight the negative aspect of illegal dumping and encourage citizens to report incidences of illegal dumping to their local authority,” he said.

He also advised, “Waste services continue to operate normally during the pandemic and householders should ensure that they only use an authorised waste collector or their local civic amenity or recycling centre to dispose of household waste.”

For more information on campaign materials please go to mywaste.ie

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Note to Editor:

*The 2020 Anti-Dumping Initiative aims to reduce incidents of illegal dumping nationally by providing funding for projects to tackle the problem, using a collaborative approach involving local authorities, communities and other State Agencies. Education and awareness measures play a key role in encouraging long-term behavioural change in this area.

**mywaste.ie: Mywaste.ie is Ireland’s official guide to managing waste. On the mywaste.ie site you will find everything you need to know about how to manage your waste responsibly and efficiently. People are encourage to browse this site for local waste services, recycling facilities, information on preventing, reusing and disposing of waste.

***WERLA: Three Waste Enforcement Regional Lead Authorities (WERLA), covering the Connacht-Ulster, Eastern Midlands and Southern Regional, were established in 2015 with responsibility for co-ordinating the waste enforcement actions of local authorities, setting priorities and common objectives for waste enforcement and ensuring consistency of enforcement of waste legislation while leaving local authority personnel as first responders on the ground.

By Waterford City & County Council

Double success for Waterford in International Green Flag Awards for Parks

Waterford City and County Council has attained Green Flag Award status for two outstanding amenities in Waterford City and County. The Kilbarry Nature Park and the Waterford Greenway are the worthy and fitting winners of the An Taisce Green Flag Award for parks and green spaces. The announcement was made today (Thursday 17th September 2020) by An Taisce.  The Green Flag Award scheme is an international mark of quality which recognises the efforts of local community engagement with green space involvement.

The Mayor of the City and County of Waterford, Cllr Damien Geoghegan, today said “As a new entrant to the Green Flag Award scheme, Waterford is honoured to be awarded green flag status for two of our flagship sites. I want to commend the work of the environment and roads sections for their impeccable attention to detail in their maintenance of these, and indeed, all of our stunning amenities in Waterford. We are fortunate here in Waterford to have these beautiful places on our doorstep and the work of Waterford Council staff is to be applauded”.

Waterford Greenway is the first Greenway to win such a prestigious award and is in keeping with the various successes already attained since opening in 2017 including the Independent.ie Reader Travel Award in 2019 for ‘Ireland’s Favourite Adventure’, the 2018 LAMA All Ireland Community and Council Award for ‘Best Tourism Initiative, and Grand Prix winner’. Waterford Greenway attracted over 284,000 visitors in 2019 and was a finalist in The Irish Tourism Industry Awards under ‘Best Ireland’s Ancient East Tourism Experience (Large)’.

Waterford Greenway has received a Green Flag Award for Parks – awarded by An Taisce Environment Education Unit.

The success of Waterford Greenway is, in a large part,  down to the commitment of local communities and their engagement with the amenity in local festivals, events and community clean ups. The many attractions along the 46km track which interact and bring additional visitor experiences are also part of what has become one of Ireland’s favourite amenities. The work of  Waterford City and County Council’s maintenance crew who work to maintain the Greenway to an impeccable standard is to be commended in working to achieve this prestigious award.

Kilbarry Nature Park is a safe, secure and accessible amenity in the heart of Waterford City which encompasses an integrated wetland , wildflower meadows, Kilbarry Bog and promotes good practice in the management of native flora and fauna. A former municipal landfill site, the area has been re-mediated to create a popular space for the community. Waterford Council has been entrusted to do this in a sustainable and socially inclusive manner which seeks to protect and enhance biodiversity within the City bounds. The Kilbarry Nature Park is also the first remediated landfill to win this prestigious award.

Kilbarry Nature Park has received two Green Flag awards, those being:

Green Flag for Parks – awarded by An Taisce Environment Education Unit.
Green Flag for Parks Pollinator Awards 2020 – ‘Highly commended’. Special Award 2020. Pollinator Award  jointly run with National Biodiversity Data Centre  and An Taisce Environmental Education to support the All Ireland Pollinator Plan.

Eoin Dullea, of Waterford City and County Council’s Environment Department coordinated the Green Flag application process, while staff of both Parks & Open Spaces and Amenities are tasked with the everyday care and maintenance of Kilbarry Nature Park, thus ensuring the park is managed to high standards. This award is recognition of their commitment to Kilbarry Nature Park and the amenity it offers to the people of Waterford.

Graham Fallon, student of Horticulture from Waterford Institute of Technology, has also been hugely influential in compiling the necessary items for the application documents which resulted in these awards.  Green Flag for Parks is part of the Horticultural college programme and this has been a firsthand experience for Graham in the benefits of the Green Flag for Parks.  WCCC has a close relationship with both WIT and Kildalton Collage and has hosted many horticultural students over the years as part of their work experience programme

ENDS

For Press queries please contact Claire Hartley, 087 2905194

chartley@waterfordcouncil.ie

By Waterford City & County Council

Low Smoke Zone extended to Tramore from 1st September

Minister Ryan has extended the smoky coal ban to Tramore from September 1st 2020.

Tramore town and environs now joins the existing smoky coal ban areas in Co Waterford around Waterford City and Clonmel.  From 1st of September it the burning, sale and marketing of smoky coal in Tramore will be banned.

You can check if you are located in a low smoke zone using the interactive map, which includes an eircode search facility.

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