LITTER PICK
Easter Sunday, there were 17 Volunteers and 2 Transition Year students out for the weekly litter pick. Our Volunteers managed to cover several areas and then headed to Mary O’Connell’s Bar for a cuppa.
Denis took TY students Jack and Cillian and planted some fruit trees In Westgate.
When the total litter from Sunday was added to the total collected by our Volunteers during the week, it resulted in 9 full bags of litter, 1 bag of Cans and 1 bag of Plastic.
SOME OF THE WEEK’S WORK
John, Gay and Adrian started a new project on Old Fort Road this week. They spent a morning edging and tidying under the beech hedge. Its leaves are transforming from brown to green at present signaling summer’s approach.
A section of stone ditch outside Oaklands was cleaned by Adrian and Thomas on Tuesday morning. 2 one-ton bags and two plastic bags of weeds and cuttings were removed.
Westgate planting.
Despite Wednesday’s dreadful weather Adrian and Thomas were back at Sunningdale cleaning along the base of the stone ditch.
On Thursday they were busy planting Beech Saplings at Alysbury to fill in the gaps along the fencing.
Unfortunately, they also spent some time tidying up planters that were vandalized Wednesday night/Thursday morning.
BUS CONNECTS CORK SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT CORRIDORS
Launch of Second Round of Public Consultation: Preferred Route Options Published
On Thursday 30th March 2023, the National Transport Authority (NTA) published, for public consultation, the Preferred Route Options for the Sustainable Transport Corridors of BusConnects Cork. The consultation period will run from Thursday 30 March until Thursday 25 May 2023.
The Sustainable Transport Corridors, involves the implementation of bus priority arrangements and cycle tracks along key radial bus corridors around Cork City. The Sustainable Transport Corridors are designed with the aim of making the bus system operate more efficiently and to encourage more people to cycle by developing the appropriate infrastructure.
Last year between June and October 2022, the first round of public consultation on the Sustainable Transport Corridors was held and approximately 3,000 submissions were received. The NTA have carefully considered these submissions, together with other feedback received from extensive community engagements undertaken over the intervening period, and have developed revised proposals, representing the “Preferred Route Option”, for each Sustainable Transport Corridor.
The 11 proposed Sustainable Transport Corridors are listed below. Please note, Sunday’s Well to Hollyhill STC is no longer being progressed as an individual scheme, with sections of the corridor being incorporated into adjacent schemes.
Dunkettle to City; Mayfield to City; Blackpool to City; Hollyhill to City; Ballincollig to City; Bishopstown to City; Togher to City; Airport Road to City; Maryborough Hill to City; Mahon to City; Kinsale Road to Douglas.
Information on the following can now be found on their website www.busconnects.ie/cork/:
Public Consultation – The consultation period will run from Thursday 30th March until Thursday 25th May 2023.
Submissions or observations can be made via the NTA public consultation portal on their website www.busconnects.ie/cork/
Postal submissions can be sent to: BusConnects Cork, National Transport Authority Cork Office, Suite 427, 1, Horgan’s Quay, Waterfront Square, Co Cork. T23 PPT8.
Brochures: Preferred Route Option (PRO) Brochures for each Sustainable Transport Corridor are available to view and download on the website.
Information Booklet –Available to view and download on the website. An Post will deliver 100,000 information booklets in the coming weeks to residents and businesses living along the Sustainable Transport Corridors.
Public Information Campaign – This will be run for eight weeks across all local media outlets.
Public Information Events – A series of Public Information events will be held during the second round of public consultation. These information events will be in accessible venues at locations near the Proposed Sustainable Transport Corridors.
The dates and locations of each Public Consultation Event are listed below.
At each Public Information event, the following will be available:
Personnel from the BusConnects Infrastructure team and relevant Engineering Design service providers on site to engage with stakeholders; Large scale overall route maps to view; Hard copies of the STC brochures for members of the public to view and take away; Electronic interactive screens to access other information like Google Maps; Comment sheets for members of the public to make comments or provide their submission in writing on the day.
Community Forums – The NTA is fully committed to working with all interested parties in the development of the Sustainable Transport Corridors. It wants to keep everyone on the proposed Sustainable Transport Corridors fully in the picture at all times. As such, Community Forums were established for each corridor. The aim was to create two-way communications with local communities allowing information and feedback to be relayed clearly, quickly and accurately.
Membership of each forum will comprise of TWO representatives from resident and community associations, disability and special interest groups and business organisations on the corridors, along with local public representatives. As places are limited, only two representatives per group can be accepted.
Email corkstc@busconnects.ie to register interest with: Name; Name of group/association; State the Community Forum you wish to register for.
CORK LGBTI INTER-AGENCY GROUP
LGBTI+ Awareness Week 2023 – Monday 15th May @ 4.45pm in Cork City Hall (Atrium)
Events have been organised in Cork City and Cork County across the week including flag raisings, IDAHOBIT Day Seminar, film screenings, education & awareness sessions, and Rainbow Picnic (Saturday 20th May at the Marina Park).
We look forward to your continued support and hope you will join with us in the spirit of the IDAHOBIT 2023
Theme: Together Always – United in Diversity!
CLIMATE ACTION
Cork City Council will award a total of €840,000 in 2023 to community organizations based in the City for climate action projects.
Funding will be given to community organizations whose projects deliver impact on climate change.
This event will introduce you to members of the Council’s Climate Action Unit. They will describe the application process in detail and answer any questions you have. If your organization is interested in applying for funding for climate action please come along.
You can register here: In person on 19/04 https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/609540049697 This event is in the Banking Hall at CUBS
Online on 20/04 https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/615542523257 Both events are from 18.30-20.30
BOOK MARKET
Pop along to the annual Book Market at the Grand Parade on Saturday the 22nd of April, where you will find a fantastic array of literary finds from some of the finest book sellers in the city and county.
The City Library will also have its own stand on the day so make sure to pop by! There will be food to go and some tasty produce and craft stalls as well.
FICTION AT THE FRIARY PRESENTS –
Rapid Fire Fiction. A special one-off Fiction at the Friary event, involving 20 emerging writers who will read short extracts from their work and together will write an entirely new story, from start to finish, before your eyes. Come and listen to the readings, watch writing in action, and hear Cork actor Kevin Power read aloud the brand-new story that emerges.
Special Guest: Inni-K
LET DANDELIONS BEE
Dandelions are an important food source for pollinators at this time of year. According to Plantlife UK, eight dandelion flowers may produce enough nectar to meet an adult bumblebee’s baseline energy needs.
Where possible, Let Dandelions Bee! This will help bees and other insects. The AIPP is not about planting wildflower seed, it’s about allowing native wildflowers to emerge naturally with less mowing.
Allow dandelions to flower in April and then cut in preparation for #NoMowMay. This popular campaign next month is a chance to further celebrate the benefits of reduced mowing from Pollinators.
BIODIVERSITY ON YOUR FARM PROJECT
The ‘Biodiversity on your Farm’ project will help people learn more about the species they are likely to find on their farm.
Every week the focus will be on a different species, sharing a simple tip for managing your farm for biodiversity.
This project is a new recording initiative in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
Recording the Biodiversity on your Farm. Across the year, 40 different species will be highlighted, with a focus on pollinators. Keep an eye out every week for a new species profile, tips on managing your farm for biodiversity, as well as identification guides and training courses.
To take part, send in your sightings! This project is suitable for all knowledge levels, and sightings can be submitted through an online recording form or through the mobile App (link to App is coming soon)
If you are up for the challenge
Visit www.biodiversityireland.ie for all the information needed to take part in this.
IT’S TIME FOR FLOWER-INSECT TIMED COUNTS (FIT COUNTS)
FIT Counts are very simple – watch a patch of flowers for 10 minutes and count how many insects visit. It is a very useful tool for individuals, community groups and others to measure change in their local biodiversity. If action has been taken as part of the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan, carrying out FIT Counts throughout the year and across future years will help track the impact of people’s actions on insect numbers and diversity.
The easiest way to carry out a FIT Count is to use the FIT Count app.
About FIT Counts –
FIT Counts are open to everyone;
A 10-minute FIT Count can be done at any time between the 1st April and the 30th September;
Location can be anywhere e.g., garden, farm, park, school, business site;
The insects to species level don’t need to be identified, but only need tally within broad groups e.g., bumblebee, butterflies & moths, wasp, beetle;
From 2022, a new FIT Count app allows people to take a FIT Count and upload the results in one go. FIT Counts for Northern Ireland should be submitted to the UK Pollinator Monitoring Scheme
This survey follows the methodology of the UK Pollinator Monitoring Scheme. They are generous in sharing resources. They also developed the FIT Count app for use within Ireland.
The survey takes place between the beginning of April and the end of September. Wait for a good day. The weather should be warm and dry. If the sky is clear (less than half cloud) the minimum temperature for a count is 13˚C If the sky is cloudy (half cloud of more) the minimum temperature for a count is 15˚C.
Find a location containing target flowers. The location can be anywhere e.g., garden, farm, park, school. Insects will need to be watched within a 50cm by 50cm square patch.
Try to select one of these 15 target flowers: Buttercup, Dandelion, Hawthorn, Bramble, Lavender, Hogweed, Knapweed, Ragwort, White Dead-nettle, White clover, Red Clover, Buddleja, Heather, Thistle, Ivy.
If none of these flowers can be found at the selected location it is fine to choose another flower that is attracting insects.
Download Android app from Google Play or Download Apple (iPhone/iPad) app and open the FIT Count
Start the survey and select the habitat. Take a photo of the target flower and fill in the information about the flower patch.
The timer will start for 10 minutes. Stand close enough to the patch so insects landing on the flowers can be seen but don’t lean over the top of the patch as this can prevent insects from visiting.
Count every insect that lands on one of the flowers of the target species within the 50x50cm patch. Try to count each individual insect just once. If a bumblebee goes from flower to flower in the patch that just counts as one. Count the total number of insects by tapping on the app screen. Allocate each to one of the 10 different insect groups as best as possible. It may be the case that no insects visit in the 10 minutes. This is still a valid result and should be submitted.
Fill in details about the weather during the count. Save the count on the app and upload the data. Data can be stored on the app and uploaded at any time. Once uploaded, login to the website at https://fitcount.ceh.ac.uk/ to see, edit or download the FIT Count data.
If multiple counts e.g. once a month or even once a week during the year can be carried out that would be fantastic and will add value to the data. The most useful counts are those that are repeated over time at the same location (or very nearby). Different target flowers can be used at different times of year.
If preferred not to use the app, can print out a recording form, take a photo of the target flower, and submit the data online at: https://records.biodiversityireland.ie/record/fit-count