5 November 1997

An exodus of scrap cars is taking place from Clare Island as a major environmental drive gets underway. Some twenty cars were removed from the island on Friday last, brought by boat to Rosmoney for collection and eventual scrappage and disposal.

This latest scheme is part of a £10,000 overall environmental plan that has been put in place for the Clew Bay outpost. According to Clare Island Manager, Mr. Donal O'Shea, grant aid of £8,000 has been made available by the South West Mayo Development Company to fund environmental projects, such as the car scrappage scheme.

To date £1,000 has been put aside for the scrapping of old cars. The sum of £1,000 was allocated for providing dust bins at various points around island and bottle bins from the Rehab Foundation have been installed.

Twenty cars were removed from the island last week in a single boat trip and there are plans for more in the near future.

As well as preserving the natural environment, money will also be spent creating awareness of local natural amenities. £1,000 will be used to create and put in place a large map at the harbour entrance to Clare Island, detailing the walks, tourist facilities, places of historical interest and natural amenities available to visitors.

Another aspect to the environmentally friendly lead being taken by islanders has been the introduction of the island's first regularised skip service. Every Tuesday the island skip visits homes and businesses, removing refuse and other items which would otherwise be illegally dumped and so helping to preserve the immense scenic value of the island.

These improvements over the past year are a huge step in the fast growing environmentally-friendly reputation of Clare Island.

Earlier in the year the island made its first major environmental scoop when the island beach, beside the harbour, received a prestigious Blue Flag award.

According to Donal O'Shea, island manager, there are now plans to enter Clare Island in next year's Tidy Islands Competition.

Clare Island's most recent environmental conquest has been its entry in the Eco Labelling awards which examine the quality of the local environment and its preservation, based on the co-operation of the community and the local authority.

Adjudicators for the Eco Label award have made their assessment of Clare Island, along with other west Mayo areas, and the results will be announced in mid-November.

Clare Island, according to Donal O'Shea, is quietly confident of adding this award to its environmental achievements.