Lorna Siggins
Lorna Siggins is a print and radio reporter, and a former Irish Times western correspondent. She is the author of Search and Rescue: True stories of Irish Air-Sea Rescues and the Loss of R116 (2022); Everest Callling (1994) on the first Irish Everest expedition; Mayday! Mayday! (2004); and Once Upon a Time in the West: the Corrib gas controversy (2010). She is also co-producer with Sarah Blake of the Doc on One "Miracle in Galway Bay" which recently won a Celtic Media Award
Global Temperatures Likely To Breach 1.5 Degrees Celsius Temporarily in Next Five Years - WMO
19th May 2023 Marine Wildlife
Global temperatures are more likely to breach the long-term warming threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius in the next five years, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has warned. An El Niño weather pattern which is expected to develop in the coming…
Seaweed's Role in Saving World from Climate Change and Starvation Focus of Talk Today in Bantry
19th May 2023 Marine Science
Seaweed’s role in saving the world from climate change and starvation is the title of a talk today (Friday) in Bantry, Co Cork, as part of National Biodiversity Week. The talk by Dr Julie Maguire is one of a number…
MCIB Criticises "General Safety Environment" Around Paddlesports in Mulroy Bay Report
19th May 2023 MCIB
The Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) has criticised the “general safety environment around paddlesports in Ireland” which it has identified as a “systemic factor” in a serious incident involving kayakers in Donegal’s Mulroy Bay last year. A group of six…
Galway Blazer II Logs Released in Advance of Global Circumnavigation Golden Jubilee
19th May 2023 Galway Harbour
“Fog cleared….BECALMED” wrote the late Commander Bill King in his log this day 50 years ago, during his epic global circumnavigation in his yacht Galway Blazer II. His logs have been made public for the first time in advance of…
Resilience of Irish Atlantic Islands Reflected in Ireland's Venice Biennale Entry
19th May 2023 Island News
A Dutch interior designer who made mats out of washed-up fishing ropes, while quarantined on Connemara’s Turbot island during Covid-19, is a participant in Ireland’s exhibition at this year’s Venice Biennale, which opens today (Friday, May 19). Hanneke Frenkel’s sea…
The State’s first authority for issuing maritime planning permissions will be established on July 17th, with Laura Brien as its chief executive. The Maritime Area Regulatory Authority (MARA) “comes about as part of the biggest reform of marine governance in…
“Atlantic alert for yachtsman”, read the headline in the Daily Express 50 years ago. The missing yachtsman was the late Commander Bill King of Galway, then 62 years old and on his latest attempt to sail around the world solo…
Memorial to Fishermen Drowned a Century Ago Replaced at Barna Pier in Galway
16th May 2023 Galway Harbour
A memorial to several currach fishermen, which was vandalised last year, has been replaced with a new cut stone version at Galway’s Barna pier. Relatives of the fishermen, William “Liam” Gill (78) and Peter Faherty (53), were so upset by…
Oireachtas Committee to Discuss Irish Port Capacity for Offshore Wind Today
15th May 2023 Power From the Sea
Concerns about whether Ireland has the port capacity to support the development of offshore renewable energy will be debated at an Oireachtas committee today (Tues, May 16). The Joint Committee on Environment and Climate Action will hear from representatives of…
Gleoiteog Crew Plan Sail from Connemara to Galway via Lake and River Corrib
14th May 2023 Wavelength Podcast
Sruthán Buí is a 17-year-old gleoiteog based in Lettermullen, south Connemara, which will embark on an unusual trip later this month. Its owner Mairtín Óg MacDonnacha, his cousins Joe and Michael Barrett and several others will set off on May…
Skellig Michael is expected to re-open to visitors this weekend, weather permitting, after resolution of an industrial dispute involving its guides and staff. Staff members of trade union Siptu have voted unanimously in favour of the proposal to introduce a…
Most of Ireland’s tested bathing water locations meet or exceed minimum standards, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says. The EPA Bathing Water Quality in Ireland report for 2022 shows that water quality at the majority of Ireland’s bathing waters “meets…
Two non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have called on Government ministers to approach fisheries management as “carbon management” by including it in Ireland’s climate action plans. Birdwatch Ireland and the Our Fish campaign are seeking phasing out of bottom trawling by 2030…
Results of Ireland’s first offshore renewable energy auction are expected to be published by EirGrid on Thursday (May 11). The offshore Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS) auction invites developers of renewable energy projects to compete for contracts providing electricity at…
Laid up the boats Do they dream of the silken sea The rage of storms. The men that sail in them Or in their fraternity? Do they dream of their heroes The great tall ships moored to their quay Straining…
Offshore and onshore renewable energy is one of six themes due to be addressed at the third National Climate Stakeholder Forum (NCSF) in Dublin’s Aviva Stadium today (Wed, May 10). The event, which will be opened via an online address…
Community Project "Exclusion" From New Offshore Energy Support Scheme Criticised
8th May 2023 Power From the Sea
An Aran islands energy co-op has criticised a decision by Minister for Environment and Climate Eamon Ryan to exclude community projects from a new offshore wind support scheme. The policy change has also been criticised by Ireland South MEP Seán…
Seagrasses "the Serengeti of the Seas" - Galway Atlantaquaria Public Talk
7th May 2023 Marine Wildlife
“The Serengeti of the seas” is how seagrasses are described by a North American scientist who is concerned about the future of a “forgotten” coastal ecosystem. Katie May Laumann of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science is one…
Financial Costs of Invasive Alien Species Equivalent To Natural Disasters- QUB-led Research
8th May 2023 Marine Wildlife
Financial losses caused by invasive species have been equivalent to the cost of natural disasters over the past 40 years, according to an international study involving Queen’s University Belfast (QUB). The study analyses how “invasive alien species” such as zebra…
Memorial Service for Mariners at Galway Bay Sailing Club This Monday, May 8th
6th May 2023 Galway Harbour
A flotilla of yachts and fishing boats will converge on Galway Bay Sailing Club (GBSC) this Monday evening for a memorial service for mariners. The event is scheduled for 7 pm at GBSC on May 8th, just a day after…
