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€100k for rhododendron eradication like “spitting into the ocean” – Healy-Rae

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“We desperately need an aggressive campaign”

 

BY ADAM MOYNIHAN

 

€100k of government funding aimed at eradicating the invasive and highly destructive rhododendron plant in Killarney National Park is like “spitting into the ocean,” Kerry TD Michael Healy-Rae has claimed.

 

His comments come after the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht announced the funding earlier this week.

 

Recently local volunteers and members of Men’s Shed groups from across the country came together to help clear some of the plant away.

 

The men, who had been invited by Haven Pharmacy, the Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce, the National Parks and Wildlife Service and the trustees of Muckross House, cleared significant acreage of the invasive weed. The Chamber provided all accommodation free of charge.

 

And while Mr Healy-Rae was full of praise for the volunteers’ efforts, he said more help was needed.

 

“It is quite simply not enough,” he said. “We desperately need an aggressive campaign.”

 

Speaking to the Killarney Advertiser this week, Mr Healy-Rae added that the issue is “way more serious” than people grasp and that the park is “dying before our eyes”.

 

“The future viability of the National Park is at stake here,” he said. “We take the park for granted. We think that it will always be there the way that it is, but it won’t. The National Park is actually dying before our eyes because of lack of maintenance.”

 

Mr Healy-Rae claims the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, who said it was issuing a one-year contract for the management and implementation of a plan that would solve the issues caused by the aggressive weed, is not enough.

 

“The funding announced recently, the €100,000 contract, is like spitting into the ocean,” he said. “I have taken an awful lot of advice on the National Park from extremely experienced people who know the park inside out, and it will take planning, funding and continuous maintenance. Not a once-off contract that will last for two years. Not a campaign that will last for a number of weeks. Year-round maintenance is needed.

 

“Whether it will be done through schemes working on a continuous basis, or a new proper plan by government that will say yes this is a national treasure – because that’s what it is.

 

“We say the National Park is there. It isn’t going to disappear - but it is dying under our eyes.”

 

The Kerry politician has drawn ire over his comments on the issue in the past - but insists that it’s a very grave problem that needs to be taken seriously.

 

“When I stood up in the Dáil and said that the army should be called in to help solve this problem it did get people talking, but it has gone off the boil again now. People were inclined to say that it’s a bit of craic - but it’s not. This is awful serious.

 

“I want the National Park to be there in 50, in 150, in 350 years. I want it to be a place of glory and a place that our grandchildren and great-grandchildren will be able to enjoy. We have to demand better.”

 

 

[caption id="attachment_23826" align="aligncenter" width="1772"] Niall O'Donoghue (Killarney Meitheal Volunteer) and Pat Monaghan (Leitrim Men's Shed) tackling the invasive rhododendron in Killarney National Park. Pic: Valerie O'Sullivan.[/caption]

 

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Parnell commemorated in Beaufort on 125th Anniversary of Land League meeting

A special ceremony was held in Beaufort to mark the 125th anniversary of Charles Stewart Parnell’s historic visit to the village in 1880, when the Irish nationalist leader addressed thousands […]

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A special ceremony was held in Beaufort to mark the 125th anniversary of Charles Stewart Parnell’s historic visit to the village in 1880, when the Irish nationalist leader addressed thousands at a pivotal land reform meeting.

The commemoration, which took place beside the Beaufort Bar, honoured the legacy of the former MP and founder of the Irish National Land League.
The original meeting was held in a field belonging to Patrick O’Sullivan and attracted a crowd of approximately 3,000, defying the orders of local landlord ‘The O’Mahony’ of Dunloe Castle, who had threatened eviction to any tenant who supported the gathering.
Padruig O’Sullivan, proprietor of the Beaufort Bar and a direct descendant of Patrick O’Sullivan, addressed attendees at the unveiling of a new monument to mark the occasion.
The stone was designed by renowned uilleann piper and artist Tomás O’Sullivan, who also composed a special piece of music titled Parnell’s Blackbird to honour the occasion.
The original 1880 meeting was reported in publications such as the ‘Dundalk Democrat’, which gave a vivid account of the powerful speeches delivered that day.

Extract from the Dundalk Democrat – May 1880

The meeting, held on Sunday, May 16, 1880 in Patrick O’Sullivan’s field south of the Beaufort Hotel, was arranged in defiance of local landlord ‘The O’Mahony,’ who warned tenants they would be evicted for taking part. Nevertheless, the turnout was overwhelming.
Parnell arrived by special train and travelled by carriage from Killarney with fellow MP ‘The O’Donoghue’. The two were met by a band and a large welcoming crowd. Police and a Government reporter were present, but the atmosphere remained peaceful and spirited.
Speakers rallied against the unjust land laws of the time. ‘The O’Donoghue’ praised Parnell as the “shining star” of Irish nationalism and stated that “Kerry desired that her meeting should partake of a national character.”
When Parnell spoke, he described it as “the largest land meeting he had attended since County Mayo” and declared the movement to reclaim Irish land as one of the greatest undertakings in Irish history. He condemned the laws that allowed landlords to evict tenants and seize food as rent payment, noting that 600,000 farmers were subject to the whims of just 10,000 landlords.
He called for legislative reform, including the suspension of evictions and Government-backed tenant purchase schemes, warning that if Parliament failed to act, “the people will do for themselves what the Legislature refuses to do for them.”
He concluded by proposing the first resolution.
“That in the opinion of this meeting, the eviction of occupiers of land for non-payment of rent arbitrarily fixed by the landlord is unjust, subversive of the true interests of the country and calls for the emphatic condemnation of all lovers of justice.”

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St Pauls sign American Maisie Burnham

Killarney’s Utility Trust St Pauls women’s basketball team has announced the signing of American player Maisie Burnham for the upcoming 2025/2026 season. The club, who performed strongly in the latter […]

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Killarney’s Utility Trust St Pauls women’s basketball team has announced the signing of American player Maisie Burnham for the upcoming 2025/2026 season.

The club, who performed strongly in the latter part of the recent season and reached the league final, is looking to build on that success.
Maisie Burnham, a 24-year-old, six-foot-tall guard from Spangle City, Washington, comes to Killarney with a strong playing record. During her time at Liberty High School, where she also played volleyball, she was a high-scoring player.
She then went to Eastern Washington University, where in the 2020/2021 season, she led the team in scoring with over 14 points per game, a record for a freshman player at the university.
Burnham later moved to the University of Portland, where her scoring average continued to improve, reaching a peak of 16.3 points per game in the 2024/2025 season.
Utility Trust St Pauls say they are looking forward to welcoming Maisie to Killarney well in advance of the new season.

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