1st October 2019 Green Drinks - Cherish Project

The October Green Drinks talk was by Kieran Craven of CHERISH (Climate Heritage & Environments of Reefs, Islands and Headlands).  CHERISH is an EU funded Ireland - Wales project, that will increase cross-border knowledge and understanding of the impacts (past, present and near-future) of climate change, storminess and extreme weather events on the cultural heritage of reefs, islands and headlands of the Irish Sea. This will be one of the most important ways that Ireland will be affected by climate change, so it is important to understand its impact.

17th February - St. Catherines Park, Lucan Liffey Walk

This month we were fortunate to have the wonderful Tim Clabon, who led us along the Liffey in St Catherine's Park. There was a good turnout and the weather was gloriously sunny. The park is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna. As well as mature trees of oak, beech and willow, the park contains rare wild plants such as Hairy St. John’s Wort (Hypericum hirsutum), Yellow Archangel (Lamiastrum galeobdelon)  and Green Figwort (Scrophularia umbrosa).

The park also has the usual variety of mammals such as grey squirrels, bats, foxes and badgers, and birds such as herons, kingfishers and little egrets. A wide variety of fish can also be found in the river, including trout, salmon and pike, and other aquatic creatures such as freshwater mussels. All in all, Tim provided the group with an enjoyable and informative day.

May 26th Biodiversity Walk on Grand Canal

The Dublin Branch went on a Biodiversity walk on the Grand Canal with Larry Gordon, of the Grand Canal Biodiversity and Cleanup Group  The Grand Canal is a wonderful artery of wildlife from central Ireland right into our capital city, and Larry explained the flow of biodiversity traffic along it. For decades bats, birds, otter and fish have all use the Grand Canal to find food and navigate within our urban landscape. The group have been given charge of a section of the canal to manage it organically for wildlife with the result that it hosts a wide variety of wild plants and flowers. The walk was very successful with about 40 people attending and everyone learned a lot about the beauty and diversity of the canal. 

18th November Otter Walk

Early on a cold and wet Saturday morning in November, over thirty Dublin Branch members turned out at the Dodder to see if we could see any otters. Led by naturalist Tim Clabon,we spotted no otters, but learnt lots about them, and also saw plenty of birds on the Dodder, among these kingfishers, dippers, long-tailed tits and goldcrests. A worthwhile morning's excursion!

3rd October - Ireland's Groundwater

This month the Dublin Branch of IWT heard Alex Russell (PhD researcher at UCD) give a talk to about groundwater in Ireland. Alex gave a general overview of the quality of groundwater in Ireland (natural water chemistry and geology). In Ireland, up to 25% of drinking water supplies are sourced from groundwater, with a particular importance in rural areas where public supplies are often unavailable. However, in Ireland private wells remain unregulated for quality testing, potentially leading to significant unknown exposures to contaminated waters, including arsenic, which occurs naturally in may parts of Ireland.

Globally groundwater is a finite and precious resource, which is being used up at a far greater rate than it is being replenished. This is yet another unsustainable use of the planet's resources whih will lead to severe water shortages worldwide in the future.

October 8th Dodder Walk

On Saturday October 8th the Dublin Branch went on 90 minute River Dodder guided walk by Kevin Flood, meeting at the iron bridge on the Dodder opposite Donnybrook Bus garage, Beaver row, Donnybrook. Highlights included lots of wildlife, the Dartry dye works, an original tram depot, Famine plinth, Classon’s bridge,... original Dublin laundry chimney, remains of old water mills and river diversions, and lots more. There was a good turn out, and the weather was perfect for walking. All in all a great day was had. Thanks to Brendan for photos.