Disposable Vapes are a product that have surged in popularity in recent years. These products are a threat to: 1. Public Health - With disposable vapes nicotine is delivered through an aerosol vapor which has been shown to have inflammatory effects on the respiratory system. As well, experts have warned of the potential of disposable vapes to act a gateway for smoking, especially for young people and adolescents. 2. The Environment - Disposable vapes are single-use items that contain plastic, electronics, and lithium-ion batteries. Disposable vapes are more frequently becoming a source of litter on our streets. This can result in harmful waste materials, such as mercury and cadmium, being leached into our environment, negatively impacting human health and biodiversity. These risks are simply not worth the convenience of a single use product! 3. Waste of Valuable Resources - The opportunity cost of global disposable vape production for the green economy is massive. The very materials such as lithium and copper are the precious materials needed for greener technology. It is estimated 90 tons of lithium and 1,600 tons of copper were used for the global production of disposable vapes in 2022. To put this into perspective, this amount of lithium is equivalent to the amount needed to produce 11,000 electric vehicles and is enough copper for 1.6 million electric vehicle charger units So let's put an end to the madness that is disposable vapes. Let's protect our health, our young people and our environment. Sign the Petition! Interested in reading more, check out the following source: https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/minister-defends-plan-to-ban-disposable-vapes-theyre-making-the-world-worse/42071990.html https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/politics/new-laws-to-ban-sale-of-vaping-products-to-under-18s/42141930.html https://web.archive.org/web/20220718111558id_/https://www.bmj.com/content/bmj/378/bmj-2021-065997.full.pdf https://www.ft.com/content/6d5ed980-8b91-4372-9e7e-14eda5419325

We're calling for Dublin City Council to take part in #NoMowMay and cease mowing the grass of parks and green spaces during the month of May to support wildlife. Why DCC should take part in #NoMowMay: - Pollinators, like bees and butterflies, are the backbone of a healthy ecosystem. They rely on early flowering plants such as daisies, dandelions, and other wildflowers as a valuable source of nectar. - The longer grass provides welcome cover for foraging wildlife such as birds and hedgehogs, as well as a wide variety of insects to snack on. - A healthy lawn with long grass and wildflowers can help in the fight against climate change by absorbing pollution and locking carbon away in the soil. Dublin City Council has signed up for the All-Ireland Polinator Plan which recommends reducing mowing to 5 times a year (Once in mid April and then not again until end of May) but this clearly is not being observed. The All-Ireland Pollinator Plan notes reducing mowing as the most cost effective and impactful way to provide food for pollinators and other insects. Visible improvements have been made by DCC in parks around the city to encourage biodiversity and this is welcomed and appreciated! All we ask is that DCC ease up on mowing wherever possible to give our vital pollinators the best chance at survival. Further reading: Why bees matter? Bees are the most important pollinator of crops and native plant species in Ireland. They are a key component of our wildlife and one of the busiest, least appreciated work forces we have. A study from the Department of the Environment found that bees are worth €53m a year to the economy. In Ireland crops such as apples, strawberries, raspberries, tomatoes, blackcurrants, peppers, courgettes and pumpkins are reliant on bees for pollination. It is estimated that almost three quarters of our wild plants rely on insect pollinators, of which bees are most important. But bees are declining at a record level in Ireland. Due to habitat loss and the use of pesticides more than half of Ireland’s bee species have undergone substantial declines since 1980. The distribution of 42 species has declined by more than 50%. (Source: pollinators.ie) All-Ireland Polinator Plan: https://pollinators.ie/no-mow-may/ All-Ireland Polinator Plan for councils: https://pollinators.ie/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Councils_actions-to-help-pollinators-2018-WEB.pdf

Widening the Douglas Road will destroy the local environment, heritage and character of this historic Cork road forever. There are much cheaper, faster and greener ways to improve public and active transport than this proposal. It will not only reduce the quality of life for many residents in the area, but also for those who use the Douglas Road. When there is more congestion around Douglas Village and on the side roads (as the plan doesn't help parents who bring children to school in the area), we will wonder why we let it happen. There will be no going back once the mature trees and walls of architectural heritage are torn down. Destroying the road is not the solution - there are alternatives. Road reallocation, school bus services etc. Please help us in our campaign to save the Douglas Road

The Columban Way is a rural community driven project focused on connecting communities using low impact walking tourism to provide socio-economic opportunities where large ticket tourism offerings are scarce on the ground. The project is staffed through 100% volunteering with support from Carlow County Council, Carlow Tourism and Failte Ireland. With your support we will be able to continue our work towards Bangor, Co. Down and through Europe to Bobbio, Italy.

Waste management companies are profiteering from the waste management crisis. Waste bin charges are being hiked and this is making it even harder for struggling households. Instead we should have publicly owned waste services.

What can be done? Kiltalown and Jobstown Parks and playground should be beautiful public spaces which the community and surrounding areas could be free to utilise. These public spaces require investment in resources to improve the facilities to allow these parks/playgrounds to be opened to our communities all year round. We are campaigning for: - Proper lighting to be installed within the parks/playground to increase community activity. - More facilities such as park benches and exercise equipment. - Our playground for the children of our communities upgraded and re-opened - Extend the paved walkways and incorporate the stream in kiltalown park. This would allow for a section of the park to be rewilded and would be a great asset for our local schools in order to have nature walks on our doorstep. - In other parks South Dublin County Council have invested vast amounts of funding and programs while failing to invest in our parks in South Tallaght, we demand our fair share of that funding and investments. - Park rangers also to discourage any inappropriate behaviour so that the parks/playground are used in a positive way, so people have a greater sense of security and these community areas attract more users.

An equal society is a better society for everyone.

A healthy ocean means thriving wildlife, sustainable fisheries, and livelihoods for fishers, but a proposal to rewrite EU fisheries rules threatens to undermine all of this by legalising overfishing on a massive scale. It would allow dramatic underreporting of catches(1), but Minister McConalogue can prevent it from going ahead. This relaxing of the rules has been tried before, in the Baltic Sea(2), where it contributed to the collapse of vital fish populations and “incentivised” hidden overfishing(1). The biggest benefits would go mostly to vast supertrawlers like the Margiris, which has been recorded fishing off the Irish coast in recent weeks(3). The cost would be felt by the rest of us. This is our last chance to stop this. Join us in calling on Minister McConalogue to uphold Ireland’s obligation(4) to ensure the accuracy of catch reporting by blocking this dangerous proposal. It’s time to stand up for the ocean and everyone who depends on it. Find out more about why this petition is so important by visiting the BirdWatch Ireland website: https://birdwatchireland.ie/join-us-in-calling-on-minister-mcconalogue-to-oppose-eu-council-proposals-that-would-undermine-accurate-catch-reporting-and-risk-further-overfishing/ (1) https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/16/loophole-quotas-overfishing-endangered-species-eu-papers (2) https://ejfoundation.org/reports/a-case-study-of-the-margin-of-tolerance-in-the-baltic-sea (3) https://www.independent.ie/news/environment/alarm-for-marine-life-and-local-fishing-crews-as-monster-super-trawler-fishes-in-irish-waters-for-a-third-day-42388536.html (4) https://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf;jsessionid=3E9E9FB0F6680A682CD5505D13ECBF56?text=&docid=253727&pageIndex=0&doclang=EN&mode=lst&dir=&occ=first&part=1&cid=2468322

The shore of Belfast Lough is special - lovely walks at low tide, seals, birds, the beach. It's a perfect place for people to enjoy, and to improve their physical and mental health, and appreciate our natural environment. Yet it's closed off. Access denied! NIWater and MEABC have the power to change that. So simply open the gate, and #ShareTheShore!

Environmental damage is an existential threat and we are facing disaster. Much of our planet will not be habitable if we continue on the current pathway.

This area has potential but due to neglect, it has become an eyesore and is prone to littering and illegal dumping. It is a walking route to Colaiste Glor na Mara. It is a walking route for many people on leisure activities such as dog walking. It is used by children as they learn to ride their bikes. Taylor Hill Residents Association did plant over 100 pollinator friendly trees and other plants in 2021, with support from Fingal Council. A lot of work from various groups has gone into make this space nice. Local adults and children spent much of the pandemic painting murals in the Summer. This was followed by a collaborative mural project between Bremore ETSS and Colaiste Glor na Mara which involved Transition Years painting murals to promote environmental awareness. We believe with proper support this area can truly become the Clonard Brook Pollinator Walk. his activity is spoiled when there is evidence of neglect and abuse of this land. The school fence has been broken and is unrepaired. Trolleys are dumped in the stream. As there is such overgrowth, it is impossible to for us to litter pick.

This will help people reduce their commute time, generate economic activity in Edenderry, and enhance Irelands rail network. Edenderry is a community in crisis. 70% of people commute out for work or education. Unfortunately, there is poor public transport options. 25% of people use bus, 2.5% get a taxi, and 42% use a private car. 10% of people use their car to travel to a train station nearby and get the train from there. This doesn’t have to be the way! 95% of people support Edenderry getting a train station. This overwhelming show of support can’t be ignored! Edenderry can only grow, thrive and prosper with a train station, and this will help with people’s commute and the environment. Join the fight today. Sign and Share this petition