Dublin City Council made use of unmanned drones to monitor predominantly working class areas of the capital ahead of the Halloween bonfire season, it has emerged.

Local residents in the Cork village of Watergrasshill have emerged victorious in a planning row over a telecommunications mast located within a few metres of their homes.

Health Minister Simon Harris has been slammed for “washing his hands” of the serious public health impacts of smoky coal.

Kelp harvesting in Bantry Bay could be a step closer after a High Court judgement dismissing an appeal against the operation.

The State’s forestry service Coillte will have to spend €100,000 clearing up 600 tonnes of industrial and domestic waste dumped on two sites in Kingscourt, on the Cavan-Meath border recently.

The Irish Heart Foundation (IHF) has lodged an appeal with An Bord Pleanála against plans to develop a large, fast-food, drive-thru restaurant close to a primary school in north Dublin.

The National Environmental Complaints Line dealt with more than 1,200 calls about illegal dumping and burning last year.

A planning decision on a proposal to build a €160m incinerator in Cork Harbour is due by Friday, almost two years behind schedule.

Levies imposed on motorists to curb illegal dumping of car tyres may not be extended to truck owners, farmers, and builders, as was previously planned. There are complaints the scheme is flawed and will actually cause dumping.

Tributes have been paid to former minister of state Donal Creed, father of the current Agriculture Minister Michael Creed and the man credited with coming up with the idea of the National Lottery.

The review of proposals to merge Cork city and county councils was “tainted”, with Government officials pushing for amalgamation, it has been claimed.

More than 400 roadside sites in Co Cork have been identified as having serious infestation of an invasive plant.

Never in the history of humanity has prosperity and waste danced together in such lockstep, writes Terry Prone

The €40,000 disparity between the cost of placing a child in care through a private foster care agency as opposed to foster carers registered directly with Tusla is to be examined by an Oireachtas committee.

A heartland of old Gaelic music and literature is refusing to dance to the tune of wind developers.

The Law Society warned of the legality of the ‘locals only’ planning rule back in 2005. The discovery of an EU ruling by a Sligo councillor indicates that it is unlawful, writes Special Correspondent Michael Clifford.

The late Willie Crowley would have continued to serve the people of Millfield Manor after a fire levelled a terrace of houses there, writes Michael Clifford

We all know that without bees, we are in trouble. And I don’t just mean as gardeners, I also mean as a surviving species on this planet.

The State has been ordered to pay the legal costs of a severely visually impaired man after he won a High Court declaration concerning the State's duty to vindicate his right to vote privately and without assistance in referendums and elections.

The manner in which Irish people have embraced recycling is a notable environmental success story, writes Donal Hickey

Local authorities will get over €226m to facilitate the building of 23,000 homes over the next four years, as part of a plan to provide infrastructure for the construction of properties.

A major development could be on the way for a key site in the centre of Waterford City following reports a Saudi Arabian company is preparing to invest €300m in the area.

Some former residents of Apollo House have returned to the building after claims of drug use at the alternative accommodation offered to them.

Cross-border fuel laundering is in steep decline, with new figures from Revenue showing a huge drop in incidents, and local authorities reporting a sharp fall in the number of cases of toxic sludge by-product being discovered.

A disagreement has emerged between Dromoland Castle and Lord Inchiquin, the direct descendant of Brian Boru, over plans to construct a new water source to serve the 180-year-old castle.

Funding for payments to authors and illustrators whose books were borrowed from public libraries in the Republic was cut by a third last year.

The Department of the Environment says Irish Water will tackle issues over the treatment of waste water after the European Commission issued a formal warning over 38 different facilities around the country.

The latest inquiry into allegations of planning corruption in Donegal has run aground amid fresh uncertainty over how it should proceed.

Louth County Council believes it is the first local authority in Ireland to buy up abandoned privately-owned houses that were attracting anti-social behaviour and instead use them for social housing.

The Government rejected calls from the Public Accounts Committee to defer the dissolution of the Dublin Docklands Development Agency, until the Longboat Quay saga is concluded.

The State has been quoted a cost of €536,638 for a one-bed apartment to be made available for social housing, in a development in South Dublin, the Irish Examiner can reveal.

Householders may have to spend up to €5,000 replacing lead pipes.