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Objections to Galway ring road dropped by NUIG and Boston Scientific

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Galway Daily news "Irrational" to build roads in climate crisis says group challenging Ring Road

Both Boston Scientific and NUI Galway have dropped their objections to the proposed N6 Galway City Ring Road.

An oral hearing on the 18km ring road which will connect the M6 motorway at Coolough

An Bord Pleanála received 296 submissions concerning the Galway Ring Road, the vast majority of which had serious concerns about it.

Both NUI Galway and Boston Scientific stand to be materially affected by the road, and lodged objections with the planning authority.

However, as reported in the Irish Times, both entities have now withdrawn their objections.

Boston Scientific had objected to the development on the grounds that it would undermine their potential for future growth.

The medtech company, which employs almost 4,000 people in Galway, recently acquired the former APC site next to its Ballybrit campus.

The ring road route will bisect their land, and Boston Scientific warned that this could impact their plans for future growth.

The road’s design has altered to incorporate a link road for Boston Scientific, the Times reports.

The route will also impact NUI Galway, with its sports grounds in Dangan to be affected by the road as it passes over the Corrib at that point.

However the hearing heard that alterations have been made to the plans to minimise any affect on the sports facilities.

On the first day of the oral hearing yesterday, a crowd of hundreds turned out to listen as Eileen McCarthy of ARUP Consulting Engineers laid out the case for the bypass, and the changes that have been made to the design.

Hundreds of properties will be affected by the route of the bypass, with 500 Compulsory Purchase Orders issued for it.

The project will also require the demolitions of 44 houses to make way for the road, attracting strong local opposition.

The hearing is set to continue for the next eight weeks at the G Hotel, where the concerns of many other will be heard.

Supporters of the project say that it is needed to tackle Galway City’s crippling traffic problem.

While detractors argue that it will not take cars out of the city or off the road, and that the resources should instead by invested in better public transport networks.

Man left blood stains inside multiple cars he broke into

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Galway Daily courts Man charged with possessing images of child sex abuse
credit: Robert Linsdell CC BY 2.0 'The Courthouse, Courthouse Square, Galway'

A man who broke into multiple cars on the same night was charged with criminal damage for leaving blood stains on their interiors.

Ronan Haverty (36), with an address at An Sailin, Wellpark pleaded guilty to four counts each of interfering with a vehicle and criminal damage, for the blood stains, as well as well six charges of theft, and one each of criminal handling and failure to appear.

He received a total sentence of seven months in prison at Galway District Court, along with three months of a previously suspended sentence which was re-activated by the court.

The court heard that in the early hours of the morning on July 28, 2019 three cars at An Sailin, Wellpark were broken into by Haverty, who left blood stains on the car interiors.

Haverty was captured in dashcam footage taken from a car at the scene.

He was charged with Unauthorised Interference with a Vehicle and Criminal Damage for all three cars.

As well as the blood stains, one car also had its driver side window broken, as well as damage to the ignition.

One of the cars was also robbed by Haverty, who took the owner’s passport, dashcam, a socket set, jacket, and jump leads.

The total value of the stolen goods was €410 according to Gardaí.

Another incident involving a car occurred two days before on July 26, where two people coming out of the cinema at Galway Retail Park at 11pm found their cars doors open, the passenger window smashed, and a man rooting around inside.

Gardaí attended the scene and found CDs from the car in Haverty’s backpack, leading to hime being charged with both theft and criminal damage.

Haverty also pleaded guilty to multiple counts of theft which included wine worth €20 from Londis in Newcastle on October 15, 2018, a 12 pack of beer from Aldi on the Headford road the same day, and toiletries worth €7.50 from Dealz in Eyre Square on February 17, 2019.

He was also charged with being drunk in public to extent that he was a danger to himself or other in Eyre Square that day, as well a handling stolen property for having a Jack & Jones jacket which was reported stolen from the store that day.

The final theft charge related to Woodies in Wellpark on July 26, 2019 where Haverty walked out of the store with a box of tools worth €180.

Gardaí were able to identify him off cctv footage and he was subsequently arrested.

Solicitor for the defence Mr Seán Acton said that his client’s “addictions have gotten the better of him” after being clean for a time.

Judge Mary Fahy said that she is familiar with Mr Haverty, and has tried to help him in the past.

But “he just keeps offending an re-offending,” the judge lamented after the state said that he has 53 previous convictions.

Also before the court that day was an application by the probation services to reactivate a suspended sentence Haverty received in April 2018 after he “failed to engage in any meaningful way” with them.

Judge Fahy ultimately reactivated three of the four months in the suspended sentence.

Oral hearing gets underway for Galway City ring road

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Galway Daily news Galway City Ring Road oral hearing gets underway

An oral hearing on the proposed €600 million Galway City ring road got underway today with a large crowd in attendance at the G Hotel.

The 18km N6 Galway City Ring Road proposal has now been before An Bord Pleanála for over a year and a half since plans were submitted by the county council.

The long awaited oral hearing into the project is expected to run for six weeks, with presentations on the engineering perspective, transport perspectives for and against, and the 296 submissions made to An Bord Pleanála.

The route will connect the M6 motorway near the Coolagh roundabout to the village of Barna with a 12km stretch of dual carriageway, and 6km of single carriageway.

The ambitious proposal will also involve the digging of two tunnels as well as the construction of a viaduct and new bridge across the Corrib at Dangan.

More than 500 Compulsory Purchase Orders have been, or will be issued to landowners as part of this project.

It will involve the demolition of 44 houses to make way for the road along its route, which has attracted heavy opposition from landowners.

Construction of the ring road is expected to take three years, with an estimated cost of €600 million.

Supporters of the bypass project have said that it will help cut down on the traffic issue in Galway City as part of a larger transport strategy.

However, others have said that it will simply lead to more cars on the road, and that resources should instead be directed towards improving public transport options.

Green Party city councillor Pauline O’Reilly said that only 3% of traffic wants to bypass the city, and is being blocked by the vast majority of people who don’t have access to another mode of transport.

She said that a lack of investment in more public transport and the existing road network is being used, “as an excuse for building a road network that will create problems, not solve them”.

However, speaking alongside Cllr O’Reilly on Morning Ireland, Galway West TD Eamon Ó Cuív said that taking traffic out of the city is necessary to encourage the development of better public transport.

Galway United announce return of Vince Faherty for 2020

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Galway Daily sports Vince Faherty returns to Galway United
22/2/2019 Galway United v Shelbourne. Vinny Faherty (Galway United). Photo: Sean Ryan | sportsphoto.ie

Galway United striker Vince Faherty has signed a new contract with the club which will see him return for the 2020 season.

The 32 year old striker has played with Galway United for four seasons now, scoring a total of 45 goals.

A vastly experienced player, Faherty has in the past played for St. Patrick’s Athletic, Dundalk, Limerick and Sligo Rovers in the League of Ireland.

But his experience doesn’t end at the shores of Ireland, as he has also played overseas with Moreland Zebras and PAEEK in Australia and Cyprus respectively.

He will now be returning to Eamon Deacy Park for the 2020 SSE Airtiricty League season.

Galway United manager Alan Murphy said that he was extremely happy to re-sign Flaherty as he put the finishing touches on his squad ahead of Friday’s season opener against Athlone Town at Eamonn Deacy Park.

“He’s got a wealth of experience in the league and he’ll be huge for us in terms of building our squad, both on and off the pitch.”

“He played a lot of games last season and was a very positive influence around the dressing room, he’ll bring huge experience to our young squad.”

Alan Murphy (left) with Vince Faherty (right)

Though the contract was only recently signed to return for this season, Faherty has already been in training with the team.

“I’m delighted to be back, I still feel I have a lot to offer. It’ll be tougher to get game time but I’ve always relished the competition and I feel that competition gets the best out of me.”

United have a lot of firepower with Enda Curran, Mikey Place and Wilson Waweru already signed for 2020, but Faherty believes that the competition will drive standards within the squad.

“It’s a very competitive squad, so hopefully we can all push each other. The idea of being involved with this group, where the ambition is to get the club back competing in the top division in the country, was one that I couldn’t turn down.”

“It’s great as a Galway lad, that has been coming to the games since I was a kid, to be given the opportunity to play for the club and it’s one I don’t take for granted.”

NUIG gets approval to use student accommodation for tourists

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Galway Daily news NUIG seeks approval to use student accommodation for tourists

NUI Galway has been granted approval to use some of its new student accommodation for tourists during the holiday season.

The university applied to amend a condition of planning permission for the 429 bed Goldcrest Village in Dangan to allow tourists to stay there during the summer.

The student accommodation started accepting students last academic year, but at the time was only allowed to let students stay there between September 1 and May 15 of each year, and for conference delegates and short term student stays during the summer.

NUI Galway sought approval to let 34 apartments in Block A out to tourists during the academic term time.

Local hotel concerns

One objection against the proposal was received from the Irish Hotels Federation, which said the industry is facing a number of challenges in Galway which this could exacerbate.

“The mix of accommodation in Galway city has a significant impact on the sustainability of the hotel and guesthouse sector which relies heavily on revenue generated in the peak summer months to support the year round viability of the sector”.

This would be “seriously undermined by any influx of student accommodation into the market for use as tourist/visitor accommodation outside the academic term during this period,” the IHF warned.

No physical work is intended to take place on the apartment building as part of this project, and NUIG said it would not constitute a “material alteration” to the scheme.

“The proposal represents a sustainable approach to the provision of additional bed spaces for visitors to Galway City during the high peak tourist season and it ensures optimum occupation of the development year round”.

Galway City Council granted planning permission with five conditions attached.

One of those stated the complex can still only be used as student accommodation, or for the approved tourist use during academic holiday period.

“The development shall not be used for the purposes of other residential accommodation, such as hotel, hostel, apart-hotel, or similar use”.

It may also not have a “bar, function room or other elements commonly associated with hotel use” without a further grant of planning permission.

Flooding likely as weather warning issued for Galway

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Galway Daily weather Weather warning for heavy rain in Galway tonight

A weather warning has been issued for Galway and the west of Ireland with heavy rainfall and flooding expected.

The status yellow weather warning predicts heavy rainfall throughout Wednesday and into Wednesday night.

Accumulated rainfall of 25-40mm has been forecast by Met Eireann over the course of the day.

Localised flooding is likely as ground is saturated at the moment and river levels are high after a long spell of bad weather.

The weather warning has been issued for all of Connacht, along with Longford, Donegal, Clare and Kerry.

It will come into effect at 4am on Wednesday morning, and remain in force for the next day until the same time on Thursday.

Further scattered showers are forecast throughout Galway today, easing off into the night.

Temperatures tonight will reach lows of 3 degrees Celcius with moderate westerly winds.

Ros na Rún: Berni struggles to face the reality of pregnancy

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Galway Daily arts & culture Ros na Rún episode 49 billings

Berni has to face the fact that she really is pregnant, Dee is worried about her own baby, and Caitríona still has money woes on Ros na Rún.

Berni, still reeling from the news that she is pregnant and feeling a little isolated in Ros na Rún, confides in Bobbi Lee.

Bobbi Lee in turn gives her hope that this could be a false positive and that the menopause is the reason for this. 

But Berni’s hope is short lived when she realises that she is indeed pregnant.

Briain, not even aware of him becoming a father, has his own troubles with some negative comments online about his ability as a trainer.

Is Andy the cause of Briain’s troubles with online trolls?

Caitríona is once again facing financial ruin when she realises that there is no insurance money coming her way.

Desperately trying to find a way to clear her debts, will Caitríona’s over spending leave her destitute?

Dee is apprehensive at her first day back at work, but confident that Mack is well able to care for their daughter.

Mack, on the other hand, thinks differently and finds help from Katy. This is not good news for Dee.

Is going back to work the right decision? Can she possibly trust her husband when her sister is still in the picture?

To see all this catch Ros na Rún tonight at 8:30pm on TG4, with a follow up episode on Thursday.

Construction to begin shortly on new UHG oncology centre

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Galway Daily news Construction to begin shortly on UHG oncology centre

Construction work is set to get underway shortly on the new three storey radiation oncology centre at University Hospital Galway.

When completed the oncology centre will include seven radiotherapy treatment vaults, a brachytherapy suite, two CT rooms, on-treatment support and ancillary physics, treatment planning and administration facilities. 

The centre is being built on the site of the former acute mental health unit at UHG.

Significant work has been underway over the last six months to clear the site to enable construction to begin.

“This is a hugely important development for cancer patients in the West,” said UHG General Manager Ms Chris Kane

“This new state of the art 8,000msq facility will allow us increase our radiotherapy service here in Galway where we provide treatment to patients from across the region.”

The tender process for the construction project is currently being concluded she added, and a contractor is expected to be appointed shortly.

Construction work will take approximately two years after which the unit will be commissioned.

Signal fault causes chaos on Galway train services

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Mechanical issues have caused chaos to people travelling by train on the Galway-Dublin line this morning.

A signal fault on the train line between Galway and Athenry has already resulted in one rail service being seriously delayed this morning, and another cancelled altogether.

The 5:35am service from Galway to Heuston was delayed by almost an hour this morning due to the signal problem.

The next train from Galway to Dublin, at 6:35am, was cancelled by Irish Rail altogether as the issue continued.

Irish rail has yet to say if any more trains between Galway and Dublin will be delayed or cancelled this morning.

Because the fault is between Galway and Athenry, it has also affected people travelling by rail from the city to Ballinasloe, Woodlawn, Athlone, Kildare, and more, as well as those going straight to Galway.

North Galway nursing home approved for expansion

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Galway daily news strike called off

The Central Park Nursing home at Clonberne has been granted approval for renovations to add more patient rooms.

Planning permission has been granted for work on the existing nursing home which will involve replacing existing amenity and treatment facilities to make room for four patient bedrooms.

The developer intends to convert the existing pool, treatment & changing rooms to four HIQA standard single ensuite bedrooms.

The total floor space of the building encompassed in the works comes to 83sqm.

Minor elevation changes will also be made to the building as part of the development.

Galway County Council granted planning permission for the development with five conditions attached.

Speed cameras introduced at 50 new spots in Galway

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Galway Daily news Increase in use of speed cameras on roads

Gardaí are introducing speed cameras to 50 new locations in Galway as part of a nationwide reorganisation in the system.

The nation’s network of speed cameras have been extensively reorganised after a three year review of where the most dangerous roads are.

As of today 903 new cameras have been introduced at new zones, while the review resulted in 572 camera zones being removed.

The number of speed camera zones currently operating on Irish roads now stands at 1,322 as of Monday morning, when the change was brought in.

Including the 50 new locations, there are now 76 locations in Galway where gardaí may operate speed cameras.

All of these locations can be viewed in an online map provided by gardaí, and their locations is also available to GPS providers.

“We are working closely with a range of partner agencies, including Government Departments, the Road Safety Authority, the National Roads Authority, and the community, in order to develop a national culture of safe road use,” gardaí said.

An analysis of collisions where speed was a factor was carried out with data from 2016 to 2018 to determine where the most dangerous roads are.

It found that the 20 most dangerous stretches of road, the one with the largest number of collisions, are all in Dublin.

The new speed cameras are being brought in at locations where there have been fatal, serious, or minor collisions where speed was a factor.

Gardaí say that this move is aimed at getting people to reduce speed, and cut the number of collisions on our roads, rather than catching people out to issue tickets.

The number of deaths on Irish roads has declined from 415 in 2000, to just 148 last year.

The most dangerous stretches of road in Galway depend on the type of incident counted.

The Headford road just past Galway Shopping Centre had by far the largest number of collisions in the three year period, with 29 incidents.

However 27 of these were classified as minor collisions, with two serious incidents, and no deaths.

The most dangerous area was the Upper Newcastle Road in Galway City just past the quincentenary bridge, where there were 13 collisions from 2016-18, including two fatal incidents.

Also a risky spot is the N65 between Killimor and the R446 junction, which has seen two deaths out of seven total collisions.

Man fined for spitting on taxi driver in his own car

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Galway Daily crime Assault and car jacking after taxi drive attacked in Barna

A man charged with assault for spitting on a taxi driver was fined €500 at Galway District Court.

Carlos Gomes (44), with an address at Raharney, Mullingar denied spitting on the taxi driver, claiming that he was the one subject to abuse.

Garda Christopher Dowry told the District Court that on November 11, 2018 he got a report of an alleged assault at The Salthill Hotel shortly after 2am.

A taxi driver said that he got a call from his company to go pick up a group of people at the Salthill Hotel from their dispatch system.

After waiting outside the hotel for several minutes he went inside to tell the group, a man and two women, that their taxi was here.

The two women came out and sat in the back of the taxi and said that they would be going to Jurys Inn.

When the driver remarked as much to Gomes when he sat in the front, Gomes snapped “You’ll go where I tell you and do what I want,” the driver said.

The driver then immediately stopped the car and asked Gomes to get out because he felt threatened.

Gomes became aggressive, crowding him against the door and spitting at him three times the court heard, hitting him in the face once.

He remarked that “Fifteen years of driving a taxi and I’ve never had something like that happen”.

When he spoke to the taxi driver inside his car, Garda Dowry said that he was “visibly distressed” and that his hands were shaking.

CCTV footage from the hotel was viewed, the garda said, but while it showed the two having what appeared to be a “heated discussion”, the full view.wss obscured Gatda Dowry said.

Mr Gomes denied the incident, saying that when the taxi driver came into the hotel he started yelling at them for making him wait.

Inside the taxi Gomes said the driver “lost it” when he said there was no need to yell, ordering him out.ofnthe car and saying he had called the guards.

He admitted that he had been drinking since they were at a party that day, but denied being drunk.

The two other women who were in the taxi ,and a bouncer at the hotel, all declined to make statements to gardaí.

Judge Mary Fahy said that it was shocking that an adult man would resort to spitting during an argument.

“I know punching can cause marks, but spitting is a low manner of assault,” the judge said.

Judge Fahy said that without anyone else to give testimony it boiled down to a matter of credibility between the two accounts.

She said she found the taxi driver’s account “totally plausible”, and asked why he would sit in court all day if this didn’t happen.

The judge imposed a fine of €500 for the assault, and awarded the driver €300 for lost earnings for having to spend the day in court.

Club championship 2020 football draws on this week

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Galway Daily sport Club Hurling Championship Draws to take place this evening

The 2020 Senior & Intermediate Football Club Championship draws will take place this week to see what the coming year will bring.

The football club championship draws are being held at the Claregalway Hotel this Thursday, February 20.

The results of the draws will be broadcast live on Radio na Gaeltachta from 8pm that night.

Every senior and intermediate club has been asked by Galway GAA to send a representative, and be in attendance by 7:30pm.

The hurling club championship draws for all levels, including junior and minor, took place last week.

Agri co-op raises €40,000 for Croí Heart & Stroke charity

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Galway Daily news Croí receives €40,000 from agri co-op

The Galway based Croí Heart & Stroke charity recently received a generous donations from year long fundraising efforts by Aurivo agribusiness and co-operative.

A cheque for €40,000 was recently presented to Croí by representatives of Aurivo, the result of their ‘Charity of the Year’ programme.

The money was raised by Aurivo employees who held a number of fundraising events throughout last year.

Commenting on the announcement, Donal Tierney, Aurivo’s CEO, said: “Aurivo is delighted to give back to the local community and support Croí and their work”.

He added that they take pride in the charity of the year programme as part of a drive towards social responsibility.

The funds raised by Aurivo staff and matched by the co-op will be used to refurbish Croí’s three self-contained apartments.

These are open 365 days a year and are used by people from all over Ireland to stay close to family members receiving hospital treatment.

“This generous support by Aurivo will allow Croí to continue to provide much-needed accommodation for people at a time when they need to be as close as possible to a loved one who is receiving cardiac or stroke care in Galway University Hospital,” said Croí CEO Neil Johnson.

“We were delighted to engage with Aurivo throughout the year in support of their fundraising efforts and our community nurses have been involved in health-check programmes for Aurivo staff and at local marts.”

Croí Heart & Stroke charity based in Newcastle is the largest non-profit in the fight against heart disease and stroke in the west of Ireland.

Its work is largely funded through fundraising events, voluntary contributions and philanthropy.

This keeps the doors open at the Heart & Stroke centre as well as funding awareness campaigns and public health events.

City centre guesthouse and restaurant granted planning approval

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Galway Daily news Plans for Newtownsmith guesthouse and restaurant approved

Plans for a new guesthouse and restaurant in Galway city centre have been given the go ahead by the city council.

Floris Wagemakers, owner of The Gourmet Offensive falafel bar, has been granted planning permission for a major expansion of his restaurant and the construction of a new guesthouse.

The development will involve demolishing an existing premises at 11 Mary Street, and replacing it with a modern, three storey mixed use building.

The ground floor of the new building will be a new restaurant space, which will be amalgamated with the existing Gourmet Offensive premises adjacent.

The first and second floors of the building will serve as an eight bedroom guesthouse, one of which will be reserved for a staff member to manage the premises.

The design of the proposed guesthouse was revised after the city council raised several concerns in a request for further information about the plans.

Although a guesthouse and restaurant are long established on site, the property is in need of redevelopment and renewal,” a planning statement from Archeco Architects said.

“There are no Protected Structure on site. However, the southern portion of the property is located within an Architectural Conservation Area”.

The developer said that with a modern development in place, it will provide an opportunity for “extended bed nights and food tourism” in the city centre.

Galway City Council granted planning permission for the development with a total of 20 conditions attached.

Over the Edge February poetry open mic night

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Galway Daily arts & culture Over tye edge February poetry reading

The February Over the Edge Open Reading for local lovers of poetry and prose will take place at Galway City Library on Thursday, February 27.

The Featured Readers at this month’s poetry showcase are Grace Wilentz, Meabh Ann McCrossan, and Fiona Foster, with an open mic afterwards.

Fiona Foster is originally from Hartford, Connecticut, but has lived on the West coast of Ireland for the past fifteen years.

She has studied poetry at the GTI creative writing classes with Kevin Higgins, and more recently at Westside Resource Centre, and was first published in the Fall 2018 issue of Light- A Journal of Photography & Poetry.

She has previously read her work at the Westside Arts Festival summer open-mic.

Meabh Ann McCrossan is a poet from Galway City and is currently in her final year of a BA Connect Degree with Creative Writing at NUI Galway.

After spending a full year solely dedicated to working under the guidance of accomplished writers such as Elaine Feeney and Mike McCormack, she is currently working on her first poetry collection and is focusing on submitting to various publications.

Most recently, her poem ‘Freya’ was published in the Moth’s Summer 2019 issue, and she has a number of other smaller publications under her belt. 

Grace Wilentz is a poet based in the Liberties, Dublin whose poetry has appeared in Irish, British and American journals including Poetry Ireland Review, The Seneca Review, The American Poetry Journal, The Harvard Advocate, and The Irish Times.

Her work was also featured on a public artwork displayed on the facade of the Abbey Theatre.

Her debut pamphlet, Holding Distance, was launched by the Green Bottle Press in October 2019.

The open reading will take place from 6:30 – 8pm on the 27th, with an open mic for new readers after the featured three are finished.

The MC for the evening will be Susan Millar DuMars. For further details phone 087-6431748.

Man charged with almost €40,000 worth of welfare fraud

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Galway Daily courts Man receives jail sentence for racial abuse

A man has been accused of earning almost €40,000 from social welfare fraud over the course of two years.

It’s alleged that Michael Joyce, with an address at Carrawee, Lettermullen, committed welfare fraud, the total amount of which came to €39,400, between 2017 and 2019.

He faces a total of 24 charges which includes counts of theft from the Department of Social Protection at AIB bank in Upper Salthill on dates between June 6, 2017 and April 4, 2019.

Joyce appeared before Galway District Court on this week.

The court heard that the Director of Public Prosecutions has directed that the charges be handled via trial by indictment.

Bail was granted with the condition that he sign on at Salthill garda station each Sunday.

The case is up next on March 16 for the service of the book of evidence before an order can be made to send it forward to trial.

Galway Convention Bureau project sees Galway Hotels going green

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Galway Daily business Galway Convention Bureau Pilot project sees Galway Hotels going green
Galway City, Galway, delegates enjoying a city break Failte Ireland Business Tourism Project Galway

Galway Convention Bureau, with its partner Fifty Shades Greener, is working with local hotels on a pilot project to promote sustainability.

The project engaged with nine properties to reduce plastics and packaging from the Galway region hotels, hoping to encourage more accommodation providers to cut their single use plastic waste.

About 1.6 million pieces of plastic are created in Ireland every day, including many small items like individually wrapped sauces, mini ketchups, mayonnaise, and sugar.

Fifty Shades Greener and the Convention Bureau outlined ways to replace these polluting items, with mini-toiletries arguably the biggest plastic polluters in the industry.

Many large hotel chains have already made the switch to refillable dispensers, and there is no coherent reason not to make this simple change. 

Hotels are asked to look at each department within their properties and generate an action plan to replace most single use items with re-usable or compostable solutions. 

Buying in bulk will reduce the amount of packaging generated by deliveries, and this project included an online platform which identified a list of items any hotel can purchase in bulk to help make the switch.

A ‘circular economy’ is also being promoted, with hotels encouraged to donate old towels, equipment, cutlery etc to external charities.

Commenting on the scheme, Rose Finn of Galway Convention Bureau said: “A lot of work has been done but we need to do more to take centre stage with our global competitors.” 

“We’re seeing conference organisers expecting these actions to be implemented as they too have sustainable policies and targets to uphold.”

“We need to build an innovative network in regeneration with a grounded perspective of the harsh impacts to our natural resources.”

The recommendation from Fifty Shades Greener is for each hotel to appoint a Green Manager, someone with authority in the property that could implement changes across all departments.

Out of the nine properties in Galway this year, over 340,000 pieces of individual plastic wrappings are estimated to be abolished. 

“Plastic pollution is a high priority, especially as the hospitality industry is a big polluter of plastic; however, in today’s Climate Emergency, a big emphasis needs to be behind the reduction of resources by the industry,” Fifty Shades Greener stated.

“It is a known fact that hotels waste thousands of euros and produce unnecessary Carbon Footprint every day, due to poor processes and systems implemented around their use of energy & water and production of waste.”

The EPA has estimated that up to 70% of food waste in the hotel industry could be avoided, with similar examples for energy and water consumption.

Storm Dennis: Over 5,000 homes without power in Galway

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Galway Daily news More than 15,000 properties in Galway without power after Storm Ellen

Power outages caused by Storm Dennis have left more than 5,000 homes and business across the city and county without electricity today.

A Status Orange weather warning issued by Met Eireann for Galway and the Atlantic coast for Storm Dennis came into force at 10am this morning.

It will remain in place throughout the day until 10pm tonight unless altered by Met Eireann.

Sustained southwest winds will have an average speed of 60-80km/hr throughout the day, with gusts reaching up to 130km/hr, strongest in coastal areas.

These winds, following on from a yellow warning yesterday, have caused huge numbers of power outages across Galway.

The worst affected area is Athenry, where multiple faults have left 2,729 properties without electricity.

After that the largest issue is in the Gort area, where there are currently 960 homes without power, followed by Creagh where electricity outages are affecting 460 properties.

There are 441 properties without power around Kilcolgan, 272 in Salthill, 265 in Loughrea, and 23 in Spiddal.

The county council has also reported surface flooding on roads in Corrandulla, Moycullen, and Claregalway after heavy rain battered Galway yesterday.

Storm Dennis: Status Orange weather warning issued for Galway

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Galway Daily news Storm Amy

A Status Orange weather warning has been issued for Galway and the Atlantic Coast for the worst of Storm Dennis tomorrow.

Galway and all of Ireland are under two status yellow alerts today as Storm Dennis brings poor weather conditions throughout the day.

Galway has been battered by spells of very heavy rain earlier today, but these are expected to taper off headed into the evening

The status yellow rainfall warning will remain in place until 9pm tonight.

On Sunday a status orange wind warning will come into effect at 10am, and remain in force until 10pm that night.

Sustained winds of 60-80km/hr have been forecast by Met Eireann, with gusts reaching up to 120km/hr.

Galway County Council has also warned of the possibility of coastal flooding due to a High Tide Advisory in place this weekend until Monday.

Winds will be strongest on exposed hills and coasts, with a risk of coastal flooding.

The warning applies to Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Sligo, Clare, Cork, Kerry and Limerick