Latest news with #RiversideHotel
Irish Independent
29-05-2025
- Health
- Irish Independent
Three-day seminar on regenerative farming to take centre stage in Wexford this weekend
From Friday, May 30 in the Riverside Hotel, to Sunday, June 1 in Enniscorthy Castle, a three-day seminar to do with regenerative farming is being hosted by Moyne Veterinary Hospital, with a very impressive line-up of speakers from various parts of the industry and country. Regenerative farming is about restoring the natural rhythms to the soil - bringing the living layer back to a vibrant and healthy balance. This humus layer when working right can hold one hundred times its own volume of water, acting as a living sponge. In the South East of Ireland, organic matter has reached an all time low of two per cent. According to Joe Kavanagh of Moyne Veterinary Hospital: 'Farmers have seen a huge upsurge of input costs squeezing margins, with them having to milk more cows, or grow more grain. To do this they have been pushing the land, the animals, and themselves further, with more chemical inputs, higher feed bills, and spiralling costs. This is the model that many farmers have been in for quite some time.' "There is a new breed of farmers emerging that are taking a different approach. They are looking to reduce inputs, build soil carbon, enhance the microbial life of the soil, bring back the biodiversity in our fields hedgerows, and build a new future,' he added. As such, the event will be a forum of farmers talking to farmers on how they can produce great quality food, with higher nutrient value and enhance the land. Mike Walsh, a college lecturer in SETU within the Masters of Science in Agriculture programme and dairy famers, will be kicking off the programme on the Friday with a talk on maximising the use of slurry using enzymes, and harnessing the farm's potential with multi-species swards. David Wallis, a former Teagasc advisor, farmer and coordinator of the DANU project, will speak on the EU funded project which is already illustrating impressive results. According to the study, grassland farmers reduced nitrogen usage from 40 to 70 per cent, and tillage farmers reduced it by 40 per cent, fungicide usage reduced by 70 per cent, and insecticide usage by 100 per cent. through regenerative and biological farming.t Other speakers include, tillage farmer Tommy Tierney, beef and sheep farmer Bronagh O'Kane, and father and son dairy farmers Fraser and Jonathan Rothwell. The next day, author and lecturer Dr Verner Wheelock will be speaking on the detrimental effects of poor food quality and how to can change it. Well known vet Tommy Heffernan will speak on the microbiome - from soil health, to animal and human health, while Yvanna Greene will talk on bees and biodiversity. Sunday will feature Alan Poole, dairy farmer ambassador of Farming With Nature, on making a difference through enhancing biodiversity. Herbalist Silja Harms will do a workshop on how to make your own herbal salves, and give a talk on common 'herbal heros' that are all around. The concluding speaker will be Mary Reynolds, Chelsea Flower Gold medallist, best-selling author and tireless environmentalist, on how to be 'guardians not gardeners.'
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
ROC the Riverway improvements complete in Aqueduct District in Rochester
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — Tuesday, a central piece of the ROC the Riverway initiative is complete in downtown Rochester, as street improvements are now done in the Aqueduct District. Roads and walkways, lighting, and signs have been upgraded on Aqueduct Street, Graves Street, and the surrounding areas. Some of the bricks in Aqueduct Park had been untouched for a hundred years, according to city officials on-site. Millions of dollars awarded to projects in Webster, Macedon Aqueduct Park and the district are across the river from the Convention Center and the Riverside Hotel, and right behind Constellation Brands, so this area is sandwiched between hundreds of millions of dollars in city, state, and private funds. This new area will better connect the quadrants of the City, with better access to small businesses, and more. Two Rochester optics leader join forces, to grow operations 'What we are consistently and regularly doing, not just in downtown but across the City, is filling in the gaps,' said City Councilman Michael Patterson. 'Those years, decades, of disinvestment, destruction, tearing down and creating empty spaces, of empty sidewalks, are coming to an end.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Irish Independent
19-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Five possible locations for new bridge which will form part of the highly-anticipated Enniscorthy Flood Relief Scheme are revealed
Frustration has festered over the long wait for the scheme to be approved and for work to finally begin on a plan that hopes to address the frequent flooding experienced by the town's residents. Enniscorthy has experienced significant flooding over the years, the latest incident being in 2021, with many homeowners and businessowners struggling to get insurance and having to throw out damaged furniture repeatedly. Following a recent visit by Minister for the Office of Public Works Kevin Moran to Enniscorthy to reiterate the government's commitment to seeing the deliverance of the current Flood Relief Scheme, the project has entered the consultation stage. The scheme is to be delivered in two phases. Phase One of the scheme will involve the removal of the Seamus Rafter Bridge, which poses a significant obstruction to river flow through the town centre during flood events, and the construction of a new road bridge and new pedestrian bridge to replace the Seamus Rafter Bridge. Phase Two of the scheme will involve the construction of the remaining flood relief works required for the town. The spokesperson for the council emphasised the need for public consultation and support: 'Flooding represents a risk to the health and safety of the community, causes significant property damage, and disruption to commercial activity and traffic in the town. The flood relief scheme will protect over 300 homes and businesses in the area from the ongoing risk of flooding.' "The bridge will be removed and replaced by a road bridge and pedestrian bridge that will accommodate for future flood levels and provide segregated pedestrian and cyclist facilities.' In preparation, a constraints study was carried out to identify all factors that will influence the design of Phase One of the scheme. This was the first step in the option selection process and outlines the key environmental constraints, including physical (topography, river and built environment) and environmental constraints ( River Slaney SAC, biodiversity, landscape and visual, and cultural heritage), that have the potential to affect the design and location of the scheme. On Tuesday, May 13, locals were presented with multiple options that they could give their feedback on. The first option was not considered feasible following a preliminary assessment, so options 2 to 5B were presented to the public. Option 2 is located approximately 890m downstream of the Seamus Rafter Bridge, connecting between the R772 Wexford Road just north of Killagoley Lane to the R774 St John's Road north of the River Urrin. Option 3 is located approximately 600m downstream of the Seamus Rafter Bridge (or c.100m south of the Riverside Hotel), connecting between the R772 Wexford Road the R774 St John's Road north of the Arnolds Cross (Parnell Road). Option 4 is located approximately 570m downstream of the Seamus Rafter Bridge (or c.75m south of the Riverside Hotel), connecting between the R772 Wexford Road the R774 St John's Road north of the Arnolds Cross (Parnell Road). Option 5A is located approximately 120m downstream of the Seamus Rafter Bridge, connecting between the R772 Wexford Road and The Promenade. The bridge is set at a level of c7.8m OD, which is up to five metres above the existing quay / road level and allows for the design flood level plus 600mm freeboard. Option 5B is the same bridge location as Option 5A, however the southwest ramp connecting to The Promenade is omitted. While the connection from Quay Street to The Promenade would still be severed, access to The Promenade is maintained via Mill Yard Land and Salthouse Lane. However, it was noted that Options 2, 3 and 4 would require the provision of a pedestrian / cycle bridge in proximity of the existing Seamus Rafter Bridge, given that the diversion distance of 1.4 – 2.2km via the replacement road bridge would be an excessive diversion for walking or cycling. Following initial feedback, public opinion is currently leaning towards the fifth options. Residents can access a feedback form online and can submit their response by the cut off date of Tuesday, June 10. In attendance on the day was Cllr Jackser Owens, who despite welcoming public participation on the plan, has thrown doubts over the expected timeline of the project. "It is unlikely it was start in 2026 as planned – there is too much red tape. When I asked the consultants on the day they said that this and that needed to be done had to be done first. I am 70 years of age and I doubt I will see this done in my lifetime.' He added that himself and others were left with more questions than answers on the day as well. "They said that despite the feedback, the scheme could be denied based on environmental factors again in the future. People also asked how the plan would affect the people on Island Rd and they couldn't answer. People are sick of listening to this over the years. So I am calling on all Oireachtas representatives in the county to come out and do something.'
