Tullamore 'very close' to winning national Tidy Towns award

TULLAMORE is “very close” to winning the national Tidy Towns award it has been claimed.

The key to winning the prestigious title is to increase marks in the competition's critical “Tidiness and Litter Control” category said the group's chairman at the launch of the Tullamore Tidy Towns Action Plan on Wednesday night last.

Shane Murray said the town achieved 51 points out of a possible 90 points in last year's competition compareed to similar sized towns such as Westport and Kilkenny bringing home totals in the mid 60s.

Echoing Mr Murray's comments, Cllr Declan Harvey said he believed more volunteers would come on board if people realised how near Tullamore was to winning the national title.

Former chairman Ray Murray reckoned if Tullamore could garner six more points in that category it would win the competition outright

Shane Murray described the action plan, available to download at http://www.tullamoretidytowns.ie, as a “step by step guide to winning the competition.”

He said such an achievement would provide a huge boost for tourism and for business overall in the town.

Anthony Hanniffy, President of Tullamore and District Chamber of Commerce, agreed and said a win would attract companies to Tullamore as it was a signifier of the quality of life in the town.

Mr Murray said the Tidy Towns group was composed of a small group of volunteers and he praised the work of former chairmen Ray Carroll and Tommy McKeigue, other volunteers and deceased stalwarts Mary Teresa Lynch and Emer Groonell.

Her also singled out Jean Ryan and the Municipal District for their co-operation. “Without them it would be very hard to stay going as we get very little funding,” stressed the Tidy Towns chief.

He recalled when he initially joined the Tidy Towns committee some years it was chiefly about litter control. But, thanks to the foresight of Loughnan Hooper and Ray Carroll, the committee also now focused on the issue of biodiversity which was of exceptional importance.

In that area the group initiated an otter survey and co-operated with the Municipal District on the Tullamore River Enhancement Project.

However, he emphasised litter control remained a top priority and revealed the committee had introduced an “adopt a kilometre” scheme. Under this initiative, people who wish to assist the Tidy Towns but are constrained by their work or educational schedules, can adopt a road or street and pick litter at a time of their own choosing.

He singled out student James Hanlon from Spollenstown and Richard Jack, Charleville Road for their work under the scheme.

Mr Murray admitted it was disheartening to see a roadway strewn with litter just days after a clean up by the Tidy Towns or Municipal District outdoor staff.

“It's matter of winning over hearts and minds”, he stressed.

He also paid tribute to Tullamore Credit Union for their Tidy Estates competition which plays a huge role in improving the appearance of areas and the local canoe club for their work in cleaning the canal.

Cllr Sean O'Brien, himself a volunteer with the Tidy Towns, said the work of neighbouring communities in areas such as Cappincur was also of vital importance.

Otter Survey

A comprehensive report on the Tullamore River Otter Survey, commissioned in 2021 by the Tidy Towns committee, was given by Ross Macklin of Triturus Environmental Ltd.

The survey identified a total of 88 otter signs along the Tullamore River corridor, covering approximately 5.8km of channel, equating to an average of 15.2 signs per kilometre.

“In a national context, this is considered the highest known density of signs recorded during an otter survey in Ireland,” outlined Mr Macklin.

He added; “ The significance of the findings exemplifies the considerable value of Tullamore town environs as a foraging and breeding area for otter which heavily utilised the river and riparian corridor.”

The study examined the relationship between otter sign distribution and river hydromorphology using the River Habitat Assessment Technique (RHAT).

This is a method of summarising a river's physical attributes in terms of its morphology, flow profile, bed quality, riparian habitat integrity, flood plain interaction and the presence of barriers in order to assign Water Framework Directive (WFD) hydromorphological status (i.e. high, good, moderate, poor and bad).

The study determined no clear link between otter sign distribution and hydromorphology given limited riverine heterogeneity but rather found that otter sign distribution was strongly linked to low levels of human disturbance using the Human Disturbance Index (HDI) that was developed by the consulting ecologists.

Said Mr Macklin: “The poorly accessible and highly secluded riparian corridor of the river running through the town centre offered a perfect refuge for otter which heavily marked territory along the river. The healthy local otter population was also considered linked to the abundance of white-clawed crayfish present in the river and also the fish populations (brown trout, minnow, stone loach and stickleback).”

Living River

The otter survey worked in tandem with the Tullamore Living River Project, said John McNally of Offaly County Council.

He revealed this project has developed nature based water retention measures to reduce nutrient loadings while creating areas for wildlife that will be visible to the public to ensure the link between people and nature is not lost.

Mr McNally said the project aimed to create a nature reserve which would complement the more formal Lloyd Town Park.

Team Tullamore

Details of initiatives carried out by the Team Tullamore, a group comprising the council, Tidy Towns and Tullamore Chamber, were outlined by Chamber President, Anthony Hanniffy while Jean Ryan, of Tullamore Municipal District, gave a brief outline of invaluable work carried out by the council's outdoor team in maintain and improving Tullamore's appearance.

SEAI

Energy consultant Laurence O'Reilly, of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), said Tullamore should be seen as a leader in the Midlands in the area of energy sustainability.

He issued an open invitation to the public to an open day on the subject in the Tullamore Court Hotel on Saturday, May 20 next from 11am to 4pm.

Clean-Up

Volunteers are being sought for a Spring Clean-Up in Tullamore on Saturday next, April 29 from 10am to 2pm. All are welcome and more details are on Tullamore Tidy Towns facebook page or at http://www.tullamoretidytowns.ie