Dear Sir... Readers' Views (24/06/16)
Legislate for all to get waste rebate
I wish Minister Coveney well with his portfolio on waste.
When we walk into any modern supermarket, we see the evidence of profligate waste on every shelf. It all looks great and is convenient, but a large proportion of what is on those shelves today will become wasted resources or ârubbishâ in the bins within weeks.
We know that we canât go on like this, that we must use finite resources and minimise waste and pollution for energy efficiency, for planetary conservation, for health, for the very survival of future generations and other species. To implement an effective âpolluter paysâ principle, we need first clearly to identify the polluters. There are two main categories.
The first is of course the manufacturer of products that excessively pollute or are wastefully designed, eg, single use, over-packaged products, items that cannot be recycled, re-used or composted. This polluter urgently needs effective tax incentives to change and our government cannot continue to ignore this necessity. The consumerâs prime duty is to separate the materials in order that they can be re-used or recycled, some perhaps by himself but most, hopefully, by new job-rich recycling industries that will spring up if given the chance.
The second type of polluter is the careless consumer who does not separate waste properly because he/she doesnât care or lacks sufficient financial incentive to do so. How to provide that incentive is of course the complementary conundrum for the Minister.
A pay by weight system on non-recyclable waste imposed long-term on the consumer, without a corresponding contribution or levy from the manufacturer, is inequitable.
It was wise of Minister Coveney to scrap charges on recyclable waste. In order to remove all incentives to dump non-recyclable waste, it might be an idea to legislate for all households to have a mandatory basic charge for non-recyclables, with a generous rebate if all waste is effectively separated.
Figures not true of farm incomes
I question the figures recently published by Teagasc showing a dairy farmerâs average income of âŹ63,020. They are omitting many costs and are not a true reflection of the seriously low incomes in farming. There are many repayments the majority of farmers have that are not included in the figures like car loans, merchant debt, overdraft facility, education, mortgages, machinery, health cover which are a common costs to most and all before the taxman is payed.
The very serious omission of hours worked also clouds the picture when many farmers work in excess of 70 hours a week. Without a figure included for this labour or indeed the contribution by other family members not being taken into account. I believe if labour costs were included it would prove that costs are gone in under the cost of production which isnât being shown in the Teagasc figures. Combine that with the spectacular failure of farming leaders to put any structures in place to protect memberâs income.
Should England vote to leave the EU it will also hit farmers in the pocket. The real problem here is the effect it will have on rural communities with post office, garda stations, co-op branches and the local shops closing down. The lack of monies into rural areas to regenerate them and a whole culture is in danger of being lost with such low milk prices now being paid that we havenât seen since the disastrous year of 2009 of 23 cent a litre and lower which are hitting farmers hard.
The daily grind of the letter writer
Just press send, and then itâs the relief and then the wait. Please pick me!
Ah yes that daily grind of emailing a letter to the editor. Its a bit like playing tennis with your young child. You hit the ball to them but very little comes back. Then, out of the blue you get a response. They printed your letter. Will anyone notice. Does this mean Iâm famous? As you walk to your shop for milk you nod to your neighbours. You (think) theyâre all thinking the same thing â âSaw your letter in the Examiner today, arenât you the clever oneâ
At the shop everyone wants to shake your hand. But as youâre thanking them it happens, that pain in your chest. Yes, a letter is forming. âSorry I have to goâ. You arrive home, sweating. Within minutes itâs typed and you press send and another ball is hit over the net.
And you wait, and you wait, again, while checking online for a possible cure.
Waste plan will increase dumping
The ongoing waste disposal fiasco absolutely typifies the hopeless incompetence of our government. The first result of the current ludicrous plan is that illegal dumping will increase. Given the recent headlines in the Wicklow People about the huge problem of illegal dumping, it might have been expected that an intelligent and competent government would set about tackling the problem â by any means EXCEPT increasing waste disposal charges.
Milking the economy
Government Economics.
You have two cows. The government takes both, hires you to take care of them, and sells you your milk back.
Behaviour of our football chief
I saw a photo on one of the sunday papers of our upset FAI chief John Delaney courting his partner at the saturday game against Belgium. Would any organisation â sporting or commercial â tolerate this behaviour of a CEO whilst working? But then he is untouchable.
Irelandâs military role in federation
I would suggest to those supporting the concept of a âUnited States of Europeâ to give serious consideration of all aspects of what that will entail for Ireland.
Specifically in respect of the role that will be expected of the Irish Defence Forces. Collecting and wrapping colleagues in âbody bagsâ (of which I unfortunately have experience) is not a pleasant experience.
Delivering those deceased colleagues to family members is a most unpleasant experience.
This is what we may look forward to within a United States of Europe.
Knotweed recipe
When I read that the Kerry County Councillor, John Joe Culloty, recommended that we eat Japanese Knotweed I immediately contacted a Japanese friend of mine who sent me the following recipe;
Japanese Knotweed Bread
2 cups unbleached flour
œ cup sugar
1 œ tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 egg
2 tbsp salad oil
Ÿ cup orange juice
Ÿ cup chopped hazelnuts
1 cup sweetened Japanese Knotweed
Purée
Was knotweed not weed once?
Was there not a time when knotweed was not weed?
Dapper days for the candidates
Hillary might be looking very presidential on Inauguration Day in her striped Donna Karan pants-suit, or Trump in his striped Armani straitjacket.
Irish voting rights
It is lovely to live in a multi-cultural divergent Ireland. People of the same sex can get married â to each other. Even the black plastic silage wrap has been replaced by purple.
The 2011 census indicated that there were 544,357 non-Irish nationals living here â from 199 different nations.
Roughly one in five of these are UK nationals. I even married one. We are old-fashioned, however, being of different genders. I have two step-daughters who spent their formative years here, going through the Irish education system. Eventually, they both married Irish men and have four lovely âIrishâ children.
Thing is that, as Enda is afforded the privilege of going to England to exhort the Irish there to vote to remain in the EU, David Cameron could not come here to do the same because the 112,000 or so UK nationals living here cannot vote in Irish referenda.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
