The Church of Ireland United Diocese of Cashel, Ferns and Ossory (covering the South-East of Ireland) ran their 9th annual Eco Competition for parishes and national schools. There were a record 10 entries! The awards were presented by Bishop Burrows at the recent Diocesan Synod in Carlow. You can view a PowerPoint presentation with photos of the projects here Diocesan Eco Awards 2017.
The award winners were:
1 Carlow Parish: Motivation of the Young Category
The Judges were very impressed with the involvement of children who led the congregation. They put the National Pollinator Programme and Junior Pollinator programmes into practice in the church grounds. There were clean up days and a wear your wellies to church day. They installed a bug hotel, pollinator plants and bird boxes.
2 St. Fintan’s Durrow, Co. Laois: Capital Projects Category
The parish installed extensive insulation in the attic – this will reduce heat loss, save energy, energy audit reduce costs, and pay for itself in 10 years.
3 Lismore, Co. Waterford: Community Involvement Category
This year at the instigation of a parishioner, a group of parishioners with the Local Tidy Towns began work on a project to tackle the Himalayan Balsam which has been invasive along the Blackwater River which runs behind the Cathedral.
4 Kells, Co. Kilkenny: Church Environs Category
The parish were inspired by the spring conference held in Kilkenny College where Dr. Una Fitzpatrick spoke on Biodiversity and particularly the pollinator programme.
First they cleared away old laurel bushes and instead planted of native trees.
Pollinator plants were selected. Spring flowering plants: viburnum, mahonia, forsythia and berberis. They also chose lavender, cistus, buddleia and fuchsia for summer flowering. They also dramatically reduced the use of sprays.
5 Monart, Co. Wexford: Church Environs
Again inspired by the spring conference on biodiversity 3 areas of the churchyard were cordoned off and left for the grass to grow long. The result: orchids not seen for 30 years, cowslips, primroses, devil’s bit, scabious, and much more. All parishioners involved and the results displayed for all to see at the parish picnic.
6 St. John’s Kilkenny: Church Environs
Many glad hands with tools gathered to create two curved, raised beds in the southwest corner of the churchyard. A grass strip was left between them to allow for easy mowing and maintenance. Perennials were planted in one bed and in the second bed a bee flower mix was planted. This will be planted annually by the Sunday school children.
7 Crohane Church, near Thurles Co. Tipperary: Church Environs
Crohane has done a lot of work in the care of its church grounds over the past year. Repairs to walls, painting and rain-proofing the church doors, repairing and repainting the church gates, and since the Eco Conference last year, contact has been made with wildlife experts to manage the resident bats. In the churchyard, patches of grass are being left uncut to facilitate the growth of wildflowers
Schools Awards
1 Wandesforde NS Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny
They have been actively working on the biodiversity of the grounds: tree planting, flower planting, installing bug hotels, birdboxes, hedgehog boxes.
2 Abbeyleix South National school, Co. Laois
They have transformed an area of waste ground, installing a bug hotel, biodiversity pollinator plants, apple trees, wildflowers. Information boards for school and general public.
3 Christ Church NS Waterford
Adopt-a-Beach Project 2017-2018
This year in school, they have adopted a beach, and chose the Saleens beach near Tramore in Co. Waterford.
Every child, from Junior Infants to 6th class has visited the beach, and spent a whole day exploring the beach, learning about the birds, animals and sea life there. They saw a seal, and a little egret, heard about the otter, and saw the holes where the sand-martins nest when they come here from Africa. They learned how the marram grass has been damaged by people on quad bikes, and many of the school families have spent time volunteering on Saleens beach helping to replant a patch of damaged marram grass.