If we are going to reverse the consequences of climate change on our planet, we will have to all play our part, town by town, city by city, country by country, starting with our own humble Ballyragget.

Lough Neagh is the largest lake on these islands.  Steeped in history and unique biodiversity, a pollution expert has said that without intervention Lough Neagh will become “a stinking septic tank that’s 400 square kilometres with no lid on it” from which we can no longer draw drinking water.  The owner of the lake-bed makes huge profits by selling licences to sand extraction companies. It's not enough to offer to sell the Lough, it must be given freely over to the peole so that the desecration can stop.

The government buying the Conor pass on behalf of the people would ensure public access to the world-famous site for generations to come. The Conor Pass is a rich cultural and archeological area and has enormous potential for nature restoration. The purchasing and rewilding of this land would show that the Irish government is serious about restoring nature for the benefit of all of us. Leo Varadkar, Malcolm Noonan, and the government have a responsibility to respond to the biodiversity crisis and climate collapse. The restoration of land and ensuring that land is held for the benefit of all should be the primary goal of the government and buying this parcel of land would be a great step towards that.

The sale must be halted to provide a pause to consult stakeholders on the future of the site. The sale contains no conditions for the protection of the factory building and its preservation should be considered on the grounds of the social and architectural significance of the last Briquette factory in Ireland.

As the US dept of Energy points out......"Tires can make a big difference in the number of miles a driver gets to a tank of gas. In fact, 20% to 30% of a vehicle’s fuel consumption and 24% of road vehicle CO2 emissions are tire-related. Tires affect vehicle fuel efficiency primarily through rolling resistance....... "Under inflation also increases the rate of wear on tires and are estimated to cause as many as 10 to 25 percent of blowouts......... "A tire that is 20 percent underinflated can increase a vehicle’s fuel consumption by 10 percent. " "because it provides more resistance, causing your car to expend more effort to get going." https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/tires-and-fuel-economy People would be far more inclined to have their tyres checked if it was free and if someone were to do it for them. This was once normal procedure in garages across the country. This could see a huge drop in transport emissions which in the past year saw a 6% rise. We can cut emissions very easily if the will is there. Tyres need to be checked at least once a month for optimum performance. Every sector needs to strive for optimum performance in reducing emissions. Transport can easily reduce theirs with this small and effective action. It is time fossil fuel merchants were asked to do their bit to reduce emissions.

Clare County Council has developed a strategy to develop Ennis and set up a company, Ennis 2040 DAC, to implement it. The strategy aims to enable Ennis to prosper as a vibrant civic, commercial, cultural and residential centre. We support these aims but NOT the project they are starting on now - a multi-storey commercial block on Abbey Street car park and a later project for two commercial blocks on Parnell Street car park. We ask Clare County Council to stop the plan to build on our riverside car parks because: • It removes car parking that our businesses and mobility impaired people need – a vibrant town needs vibrant businesses • It is a speculative development for high cost office and large retail that could end up as a white elephant in a prime location • It hands valuable open public space to private interests, space that is ideal place for our community to gather and enjoy river and town views • This generic development in the heart of the town could destroy what people love about Ennis - a medieval town with narrow, winding streets and laneways with the beautiful river Fergus meandering through it We ask Clare County Council not to transfer this public property to Ennis 2040 DAC, a company that can sell it on without consent by the county council or councillors. There are many vacant sites that exist in Ennis that are ideal for regeneration and development. We ask Clare County Council and Ennis 2040 DAC to focus on these. Do you want large private buildings on our riverside car parks? If not, please sign our petition and share it with others who also want to stop this madness. You can also sign this petition in person at many of the businesses in Ennis Town Save Ennis Town is a group drawn from the general public including community, business, retail and political representatives. It formed after a public meeting on 4th May 2023 in the Temple Gate Hotel with over 200 people, all concerned about elements of the Ennis 2040 plans. We aim to have constructive engagement with Ennis 2040 DAC and develop a plan that will enhance our town for everyone.

The Irish Funds Industry Association (Irish Funds) is the representative body for the international investment fund community in Ireland. According to Irish Funds, Ireland is the domicile for 5.9% of world-wide investment fund assets, making it the 3rd largest global centre and the 2nd largest in Europe. On their website, they claim as one of their values "Integrity – in everything we do". But integrity is incompatible with allowing their membership to include nine of the ten top investors in major companies in oil and gas expansion - companies like Exxon, Chevron, Conoco and Glencore – and four of the banks labelled the “Dirty Dozen” in the 2023 Banking on Climate Chaos report. By allowing these 14 tainted companies to continue as members, Irish Funds is legitimising their cannibalisation of the planet. By expelling these companies, Irish Funds will send a strong signal that funding fossil fuels is immoral and unacceptable in an escalating climate and biodiversity emergency. It will increase pressure on these companies to divest from fossil fuels – the burning of which is the main source of greenhouse gas emissions that are cooking our planet.

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

Encourage & facilitate use of public transport. Currently women, girls, people in wheelchairs, with bikes & buggies are either afraid or cannot access station.

SUVs are 20% more polluting regular cars. They are bigger, more dangerous and take up more room in parking spaces and on the street. Even SUVs that are fully electric are emissions-intensive, because of their battery size and the amount of energy they require. SUV and crossover sales are growing rapidly in Ireland: 55,000 were sold in 2021 (nearly 55% of all new cars). Many people do not actually need an SUV for their daily usage. SUVs popularity is driven more by fashion and marketing than practical considerations. Most SUVs are not designed for off-road use, and their larger size and weight can make them less efficient and more difficult to manoeuvre in urban areas.

SUVs are 20% more polluting regular cars. They are bigger, more dangerous and take up more room in parking spaces and on the street. Even SUVs that are fully electric are emissions-intensive, because of their battery size and the amount of energy they require. SUV and crossover sales are growing rapidly in Ireland: 55,000 were sold in 2021 (nearly 55% of all new cars). Many people do not actually need an SUV for their daily usage. SUVs popularity is driven more by fashion and marketing than practical considerations. Most SUVs are not designed for off-road use, and their larger size and weight can make them less efficient and more difficult to manoeuvre in urban areas.