Irish bumblebee numbers are declining at an alarming rate every year, according to a top scientist.

Miguel Angel Jimenez has his own record as the oldest winner in European Tour history in his sights after making a flying start to the Omega European Masters.

Last week, representative of civic organisations crowded in for the “National Economic Dialogue”.

The summer festival season is already under way with more of the big guns readying themselves in the weeks ahead.

Des O’Driscoll looks through the highlights of what’s on the telly this week. 

GIVEN the extent of environmentalist Duncan Stewart’s injuries when he fell from a tree near the Chernobyl reactor 12 years ago, it’s a surprise he is still standing, not to mind continuing to work at a dizzying speed.

Dara O’Briain and Ed Byrne begin a new travel show, Dara And Ed’s Great Big Adventure, on RTÉ One on Thursday.

Dermot Bannon is back with a new series of Room To Improve tomorrow.

LIAM CLANCY first decided on Ring, Co Waterford, in 1963. It was over the Comeragh Mountains from Carrick-on-Suir, where he had grown up.

* The Lough Flower and Garden Club will visit Woodcrest Garden, Newcestown, on Tuesday, June 24. Entrance €7. Members only.

Environmentalist Duncan Stewart has had a last-minute change of heart and decided not to run in this year’s European elections.

Former RTÉ presenter and environmentalist Duncan Stewart threatened to walk out of a live radio interview yesterday unless he was given 10 minutes to speak about climate change.

A high-profile TV presenter and environmental campaigner says he is considering running in the European elections next month.

Almost 2,000 lives could be saved every year with an all-island smokey coal ban, the Asthma Society of Ireland has claimed.

MasterChef Ireland and Hector both make welcome returns.

ONE of the most uplifting things about visiting a school, especially a primary school these days, is to immediately sense a keener awareness of nature and the environment.

Keith Barry hacks your brain and Grey’s Anatomy returns.

Experts in Ireland believe people need to take the issue of renewable energy seriously before it reaches a crisis point.

Environmentalist and broadcaster Duncan Stewart has claimed an immediate ban on smoky fuel would save 1,500 lives over the next three years.

Ireland’s housing stock is in such an “appalling” condition that it would cost between €27bn-€37.5bn to properly retrofit the homes to an “acceptable” level of energy efficiency, an expert has warned.

Westmeath can become Ireland’s number one bioenergy region on foot of a ‘BioRegions’ project driven by Westmeath Community Development and supported by rural and farmer groups, according to Duncan Stewart.

Qualifying for a major championship would be considered a good week’s work in any golfer’s estimation but, instead of basking in his success, Elliot Saltman went out and won a tournament.

WITH the brand new year cranking into gear, thoughts of buying a first home, or even trading up, will be orbiting the minds of many.

Blending the modern with the old, this house packs a punch, writes Trish Dromey

THE state’s environmental and waste watchdog has been forced to defend itself after spending thousands of euro in taxpayers’ money on corporate sponsorship and promotional trinkets.

PIONEERING entrepreneurs who have invested €200 million in renewable energy are on the verge of leaving the sector, yesterday’s Teagasc National Bioenergy Conference heard.

IRELAND can use the launch of a new €220m EU fund for sustainable building projects as a springboard for further green energy projects, according to a leading industry expert.

A SYMBOLIC act guaranteeing vital attention for environmentally friendly policies, or a well-meaning but ultimately pointless move that does nothing to solve a genuine problem?

REVENUE raised from the carbon tax should be used to tackle fuel poverty, award-winning architect and RTÉ presenter, Duncan Stewart, said yesterday.

LOCAL food ingredients enhance satisfaction levels among customers, delivering “empty plates” and savings on waste, according to a Good Food Ireland membership survey.

EVEN driving down this country’s rural roads, much of Ireland is hidden, more of it is simply overlooked, abandoned, or ignored. And, some of it is making its way back – as can be seen in a day in the wandering company of someone like the multi-faceted George Gossip.

Environmentalists have welcomed the fall in Ireland's greenhouse gas levels last year.

FOOD grown within 50 miles of Clonakilty is on the menu this week as the west Cork town focuses on sustainability.

A PRODUCTIVE agri-food sector can co-exist with nature in a sustainable manner, according to Teagasc director Professor Gerry Boyle.

A PRIME Dublin 4 address and some redbrick charm are on offer at an attractive two-bed house at 13 Dodder View Cottages in Ballsbridge.

A plainclothes policeman chased a conman through pavements crowded with Christmas shoppers and tourists in the heart of New York’s Times Square, killing the man after a gun battle.

FORMER Fine Gael leader and Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald made a dramatic intervention in the European elections yesterday when calling on party supporters to back Fianna Fáil’s Eoin Ryan ahead of Sinn Féin’s Mary Lou McDonald in the race for the last seat in Dublin.

Financial guru Eddie Hobbs, celebrity chef Darina Allen and broadcaster Duncan Stewart have endorsed the Green Party ahead of Friday’s elections.

WHITE-WASHED walls, a clutch of children’s toys, a line of flapping clothes. From the outside, the home of Gillian and Shane Malley looks like any other family home.

THE house construction phase of the country’s first eco village commenced on Saturday in Cloughjordan in north Tipperary.

Smoking should be banned in all vehicles carrying children, cross-party politicians were told today.

“NEOCONS, Trotskyites and Spuc-ers” opposed to the Lisbon Treaty have dominated the campaign much to the yes camp’s frustration, Green Party TD Ciarán Cuffe said yesterday.