Another success to tell you about as the Commissioner for Environmental Information orders release of a register of the locations of 1,223 locations around Ireland where abstraction of water takes place.
Examples of this would be dairy, beef, and horticultural farming, data centre cooling, quarrying, and other industrial uses.
Some pretty remarkable parts of the case included:
The EPA claiming that personal information exemptions applied even though much of the register comprised companies, organisations, and state bodies.
The Department of Agriculture pressured the EPA not to release a list of farms pumping from rivers.
The EPA bizarrely claimed disclosure of the locations could leave them vulnerable to “vandalism”.
You can read the full decision below. Also, a really good long read from TheJournal.ie including an interview with our co-director Ashley Glover.
The Defence Forces had to dismantle thousands of weapons last year including rifles that would have been of considerable value to collectors.
Strict rules prohibit the Irish military from selling weaponry to anybody except the manufacturer or another government, where feasible.
However, defence sources said the weapons that were decommissioned could have netted a significant payback for the state had it been possible to sell them.
An inventory of items details how 1,714 pistols, many of them Browning weapons, along with 1,555 rifles, mostly Lee-Enfield .303 rifles, were destroyed.
A defence source said the rifles especially were still valuable and had they been sold could have generated a significant payback for the exchequer.
That was not all the weaponry that was decommissioned either, with 208 light machine guns and 96 heavy machine guns also scrapped.
In addition, twenty three 20mm cannons were destroyed, along with three mortars, seven anti-tank guns, and 564 assorted barrels for the weapons that were disposed of.
A further 155,438 associated spare parts were also scrapped, according to information provided by the Defence Forces.
Internal records detail how the Defence Forces’ hands were tied over how they could dispose of the weapons.
A letter from Jacqui McCrum, the Secretary General of the Department of Defence, said permission had been granted for sale of some of the weapons in 2012.
However, this was superseded by new rules that were introduced three years later.
Her letter said: “New policy stipulations for stock disposal in the nature of weapons and ammunition introduced in April 2015, strictly limit customers of such sales to the original manufacturer or their authorised agents only, or another government, where feasible.”
She said that based on that policy change and the absence of a buyer for the weapon, she would “welcome plans for the destruction event” last July.
Ms McCrum wrote: “I would, however, emphasise the need for thorough, detailed and documented records of the items destroyed to facilitate the ongoing process of reconciling … items procured with public funds.”
The letter also explained how the Defence Forces had invited a representative of the department to be present at the destruction to “provide additional assurance”.
Internal emails also describe how some of the weapons were held back for museum or display purposes after first being deactivated.
Another message said rifles would require stripping of their wooden components as a shredder would only destroy metallic parts.
An email said: “It is expected that this disposal process will take less than ten days and further processes are being planned for.”
Security analyst Declan Power said: “It’s another example of how the Defence Forces have their hands tied behind their back in ways that do not always benefit them.
“Some of these items have a resale value and it would seem to make more sense that they could be sold on to at least get some return from the taxpayer, or at least for that option to be explored.
“Whatever money was raised through their sale could have been reinvested into new equipment, or into the general defence budget.” Asked about the records, the Defence Forces said they had nothing further to add to their contents.
Greyhound Racing Ireland asked for a €27,000 hike in pay for its new CEO along with the provision of a company car.
GRI said the existing €132,920 salary for the role had not been reviewed in many years and was “no longer reflective” of the remuneration packages for senior management positions in the public or private sector.
In an appeal to Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue, they said the CEO of Horse Racing Ireland was being paid €190,000 per year with a car and pension.
However, the board of GRI said they would be happy with a €160,000 salary for their new boss, a position that is expected to be filled in the coming months.
They also asked for a company car saying the organisation had nine stadia, which meant the CEO would be required to travel on a regular basis to different locations.
In addition, they sought a “defined contribution pension – 25% of salary paid by [GRI]” as well as up to thirty days’ holidays, according to records released under FOI.
Tusla was worried individuals suspected of child abuse or domestic violence could intercept mail intended for victims who were being told their personal data had been compromised in the HSE cyberattack.
In a confidential report on what they call ‘Operation Return’, the child and family agency also highlighted concerns that letters letting people know their personal data had been stolen could end up at the wrong address and get opened by strangers.
An internal report from Tusla said some people were likely to be “extremely distressed” when they found out their personal information had been compromised in the 2021 cyberattack.
They said some – especially people who had recently turned eighteen – might not even have been aware that the agency held information about them, let alone that it had been exposed.
The report said every notification would need to be first examined by a social worker to ensure there was no risk to individuals from sending them a letter.
The report said: “Tusla are very aware of the risk to persons who may have notified child protection and welfare concerns or requests for domestic abuse services if the person subject to these abuse allegations is still based in the household and was to open a letter disclosing an engagement with Tusla that perhaps the person had yet to be informed of at that point in time.”
Irish Rail had to spend almost €1.9 million last year dealing with vandalism, graffiti, and other damage to its trains and buildings.
The rail operator dealt with 184 cases of graffiti or vandalism on trains last year with clean-up, repair, or repainting costing €1.73 million – or around €9,400 per incident.
The majority involved damage to the exterior of trains, a total of 166 cases, while the interior of a carriage was damaged on 18 occasions.
There were more than 300 instances logged where there was vandalism or damage to a train station or a railway structure.
A further €156,230 was spent by Irish Rail on clean-up and repairs following those with damage to lifts, bridges, rooves, and electrical substations all reported.
The Central Bank said they were closely watching for “broader spillover risks” in the aftermath of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB).
In meetings of the Financial Stability Group, officials said that direct exposure of the Irish financial system was “minimal” following the bank’s failure.
However, a meeting on March 13 was told it could have an impact on the technology sector both globally and within Ireland.
In addition, the group heard that some Irish tech firms could experience liquidity issues and loss of credit, including credit card facilities.
The failure had by that stage caused “broader market turbulence”, with the value of banking stocks internationally and domestically affected.
An update from the Central Bank to the meeting said: “Direct exposures of the Irish financial system to SVB were minimal, but broader spillover risks are being actively monitored.”
On March 16, another meeting of the group was told the banking turmoil, which had now affected Credit Suisse, was being watched “closely”.
The Central Bank were looking at “the channels of potential spillover” to the Irish financial sector, including to credit institutions and funds.
Gardaí missed more than 75,000 days of duty last year after they were injured in the line of duty, according to new figures.
There were 20,807 days of absence for officers from a malicious injury that happened on duty, with a further twenty days where a garda was viciously attacked off duty.
Just over 40,000 days were lost to an accidental injury that happened during work while 6,822 days were taken following a road traffic accident while working.
Figures released under FOI show that more than 235,000 days were lost to illness last year, the equivalent of 645 officers off sick on any given day.
Garda manpower during 2022 was around 14,000, which meant each member took an average of roughly seventeen days off ill last year.
An Air Corps airplane had to make an emergency landing after the crew reported hearing a loud bang with smoke spotted streaming from the aircraft’s engine.
A safety investigation report said the two-person crew experienced “significant vibrations” in the cockpit along with a “loud grinding metallic noise”.
The aircrew of the Pilatus airplane then lost all engine power with an emergency oxygen system activated to ensure they were not overcome with smoke or fumes.
The plane had been on a training flight and was about fourteen miles from Air Corps headquarters in Baldonnel in Dublin when it ran into trouble.
The investigation report said: “Shortly after levelling off, the crew heard a loud bang and experienced significant vibrations and yaw with fluctuating torque.”
The instructor took control of the plane and used what power was still available from the engine to level off the aircraft.
As noise and vibrations “intensified”, black smoke could be seen coming from the engine with an oil slick covering the canopy of the plane.
“The aircrew experienced a loss of remaining engine power and completed the engine fire or mechanical failure in the air checklist and the engine was secured,” said the report on the 2021 incident.
Leinster House was hit with a bill for a staggering €334,000 for electricity in December, a 216% increase on the previous year and despite cutting their energy usage.
In internal emails, a staff member wrote of getting “a bit of a shock” after seeing the bills that came rolling in at the end of the year.
Another said that while they had been expecting a “significant step change” in bills, the actual increase “seems very significant”.
Records released by the Oireachtas show the bill for the final month of the year more than trebled from €105,945 in December 2021 to €334,919 in December 2022.
However, gas bills remained more stable as Leinster House relied more on a wood pellet heating system to keep TDs and Senators warm.
While €33,223 was spent on wood pellets between November and December of 2021, €99,000 was spent on them during November and December 2022.
Serious risk from codeine-containing medicines were not being spelled out clearly enough in product information, according to a report from the Irish Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA).
The HPRA is currently leading an EU investigation of the controversial combination painkillers following research on serious adverse reactions, including fatalities, for people who had developed dependence on the drugs.
A report said in addition to well-known “toxicities” from the anti-inflammatory products in the over-the-counter medications, there was also a risk of severe kidney damage from long-term use.
It detailed the development of “severe hypokalaemia in the setting of renal tubular acidosis” following continuous use or misuse of the codeine medications.
The report said this was a “new concern” that had not been properly reflected in product information for codeine and ibuprofen combination drugs.
It said the condition appeared in patients where there was “prolonged chronic abuse” as a result of a dependence that had developed.
The HPRA said healthcare providers needed to be alerted to the risk and to raise patient awareness of “the potentially clinically significant consequences of codeine addiction”.