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Killarney town third cleanest in IBAL Litter League

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Killarney town is ‘cleaner than European norms’ and ranked the third cleanest town out of 40 towns and cities – according to recent results from Irish Business Against Litter League (IBAL).

An Taisce, who carry out the surveys on behalf of IBAL, commented in its Killarney report: “An outstanding performance by one of the country’s busiest tourist attractions. Some top ranking sites deserve a special mention e.g. the Recycle Facility was excellent, (rare for such facilities generally); the Main Street wasn’t just very good with regard to litter but overall presentation e.g. paving, seating, bollards etc.; the same applied to the Jarvey Park – this was a very attractively presented and maintained environment. Some of the bins in Killarney provided the opportunity for ‘dry recycling’ and this is a very welcome feature.”
The overall result for Killarney is tremendous testament to the hard working, dedicated, enthusiastic Municipal staff and the large number of litter-picking volunteers that keep our town to such a high standard of cleanliness, Johnny McGuire from Killarney Tidy Towns explained this week.
“Out of a total of 10 sites adjudicated, Killarney received seven Grade As but unfortunately received three Grade Bs. The main cause of these negative comments were coffee cups, plastic bottle, sweet wrappers and fast food wrappers; all food related items which are the root cause of Killarney losing out on achieving 10 straight As.”
He added that the judging for the IBAL results in 2019 will take place between now and June.
“We would ask everyone in the Killarney area to be more vigilant with the removal of litter and if anyone would like to adopt an area for litter control, please contact Killarney Chamber of Tourism & Commerce on 064 6637928. Once again, well done and congratulations to everyone in team Killarney for such a fantastic result.”
As runners-up, Killarney will receive a number of Norway maple trees to enhance the local environment, courtesy of the Irish Tree Centre in Cork.

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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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