Noreen Kennedy - Response to local election questions

I have read your email with great interest, and although I do not claim to be an expert in these matters it is of great interest to me, firstly that we as a nation should not be doing any more harm to our environment and secondly that we should be using and producing our energy more efficiently and cleanly.

1. I would totally agree that Nenagh Town Council should support initiatives to help our communities flourish in the coming low-carbon future and go further and say that they should lead by example.
2. My position on the following initiatives are as follows:
A .wind energy and bio fuels:
I was astounded to realise that in 2009 there are only 113 approx. wind farms in Ireland with about 1,030+ turbines, this seems a pitiful number when it could be much greater and if it were then our reliance on fossil fuels would not be as desperate as it is. A recent report I read in one of the Sunday papers talked about the proposal to use natural costal valleys to provide hydro storage reservoirs, wind farms would then be used to pump sea-water into these reservoirs. The water could then be passed through turbines generating massive amounts of power. I realise that this would take a huge investment but surely this would lead to employment and the sale of the extra power to our European neighbours, Ireland could easily take the lead in this and repair some of the damage done to our economy. Think of the saving in fossil fuel imports, this is a win win situation. On bio fuels I am in favour but have reservations where materials used may also be food products and with many poorer countries and people starving I have trouble resolving some of these issues.

B .Local grown food promotion/farmers markets
Is there anything nicer than something home grown and fresh from the garden and what better way to promote any small town or village than promoting local produce in the eating houses and local shops. The farmers market should be situated centrally in the town to draw in the concerned shoppers, and should not be seen as a threat to rate paying business but rather an attraction to the town and an incentive to shoppers to visit the rest of town.
I would like to see the use of allotments become a part of our local scene and encourage more people to grow their own . This might be achieved by putting to good use suitable land that is not in use by the local authority.

C. Improved public transport,
How we get around is central to our way of life. I would like to see the establishment of local transport services and in particular daytime services for the elderly and more consideration and inclusion of disabled persons, such as wheelchair users, providing suitable cars and buses for these users. While improvements have been made for the provision of cyclists locally more can be done particularly with children in mind and the possibility of increasing the numbers using bikes to get to school. Another novel idea might be the provision of ‘walking buses’ for children to enable them to walk to school safely.

D. Energy saving measures in public housing, public buildings and street lighting. It goes without saying that all new local authority housing should include energy saving measures and to the highest possible standard. For public buildings the same should apply and where possible remedial works should be carried out when budget restraints allow. With street lighting again replacement of old fittings and installation of more efficient lighting should be dealt with as budget allows.

E. Reserved park & recharge spaces for electric vehicles in towns and villages. This initiative made me smile, the little history I remember from school includes a snippet on the first electric car, way back in the early 1830’s in Scotland a businessman called Robert Anderson designed the first crude electric car, the idea of reserving spaces for electric vehicles in downtown Nenagh would have seemed very far fetched then but it should be a consideration with any planning applications in the future we must move with the times.

F. Energy and fertilisers from waste and reuse of grey water. Sadly I have very little knowledge of this initiative but I will do some research on it. In principal it does appear a very good idea, but I will say nothing until I hear more….

If I am elected to the Nenagh Town Council, I would be particularly interested in the promotion of local home grown produce and all things under this heading. The provision of more local transport services particularly for the elderly and the disabled. The continued promotion of energy saving in public buildings, public housing and street lighting