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
Seas off Wexford Designated as Proposed Special Protection Area for Birds
12th January 2024 Marine Wildlife
The seas off Wexford have been designated as a proposed new special protection area (SPA) for birds by Minister of State for Heritage Malcolm Noonan. The new SPA adjoins eight existing SPAs designated for this area and will cover over…
Once a Fast Food of Dublin Bay, Oysters May Return - David Lawlor of the Green Ocean Project (Podcast)
11th January 2024 Wavelength Podcast
Diver, sailor and coffee distributor David Lawlor is not that mad about oysters – he’ll eat them out of politeness – but he is mad about what they can do as keystone species in stabilising marine habitats. That’s why he…
Minister for the Environment Eamon Ryan has paid tribute to businessman and renewable energy developer Eddie O’Connor, who has died at age 76 after an illness. The former Bord na Móna chief executive, who had trained as a chemical engineer…
West Cork’s Bere island has been left without power for over 24 hours after an undersea electricity cable was damaged. ESB Networks said a total of 281 customers remain affected by the power outage, which also affected the Castletownbere area…
"My Toughest 48 hours at Sea"- Pam Lee from Greystones On Her Transat Jacques Vabre Yacht Race (Podcast)
30th December 2023 Wavelength Podcast
Let’s do that again, but do it better – they are the words of a very determined Pam Lee from Greystones, who came 29th with Tiphaine Ragueneau in the 30th Transat Jacques Vabre yacht race from Le Havre to Martinique.…
Six county outdoor recreation officers are to be appointed as part of a €2 million package of measures to support the development of “County Outdoor Recreation Plans”, Minister for Rural Affairs Heather Humphreys has said. Funding of €1.28 million over…
Clipper Race "One of the Most Remarkable Challenges" for a "Rank Amateur" - Connemara Participant
28th December 2023 Clipper Race
Spare a thought for the Clipper Race participants who spent Christmas Day at sea and hope to make it to Newcastle, Australia for New Year’s Day. “Rewarding, but really, really tough” is how Connemara sailor Paddy Moran (34), on board…
BIM Distributes Over Three Tonnes of Fresh Fish Via FoodCloud to Charities over Past Seven Years
26th December 2023 BIM
Almost 8,000 fish meals distributed by the social enterprise FoodCloud to community groups and charities have come from classes with trainee fishmongers, new figures confirm. Over three tonnes of fresh salmon, cod, place and monkfish have been donated over the…
MCIB Calls for Review of Boarding and Disembarking Risk Assessments on Fish Farm Vessels
22nd December 2023 MCIB
The Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) has said that boarding and disembarking risk assessment and associated policies and procedures should “immediately be reviewed” after the serious injury of a diver working on salmon farms off the Galway coast. The 33-year-old…
Port of Galway Recognition for EU Ten-T Status Means "Christmas Has Come Early" - Port
22nd December 2023 Galway Harbour
The Port of Galway says that “Christmas has come early” for it, with confirmation that it has been recognised for European TEN-T status. The development has been welcomed by the harbourmaster, Capt Brian Sheridan, and Galway West junior minister and…
Ireland has signed up to a European wind charter to develop offshore and onshore wind. Part of the charter involves signing a voluntary “wind pledge” committing to deliver targets for 2024 to 2026, and pledging indicative targets for 2030 and…
Tomek Ciezki of Heavy Man Films on The Making of the Documentary - Man Versus Ocean
17th December 2023 Wavelength Podcast
When Tomek Ciezki of Heavy Man Films was asked to meet a man who wanted to make a video of his “holiday and travel photos”, he was initially doubtful. However, the footage took him aback – he was stunned by…
Reef sharks were always thought to be in perpetual motion, but a new study suggests sharks can nap or sleep. The study is based on grey reef sharks in the Seychelles, and has been published in the Journal of Fish…
Environmental Network Receives 1.1m Euro In Additional Funds from Government
14th December 2023 Marine Wildlife
An environmental network has been given additional funding of €1.1 million by Minister for Environment and Climate Eamon Ryan to “build capacity” in relation to planning for offshore wind. The extra funding of €1.1 million has been approved by the…
MCIB Says Regulations Breached on Fishing Vessel Involved in Serious Deck Injury Incident Off East Coast
14th December 2023 MCIB
The Marine Casualty Investigation Board has recommended that the Minister for Justice should consider carrying out an audit of the crewing arrangements of any fishing vessel or vessels to ensure non-EEA crew are compliant with the rules governing work permits.…
Revised Edition of Northabout Published by Jarlath Cunnane
12th December 2023 Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club
Polar circumnavigator, sailor and boat builder Jarlath Cunnane is marking the publication of a revised edition of his book, Northabout, in Dublin’s Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club next week. Cunnane and crew became the first small yacht to complete the…
Transatlantic Oarsman Damian Browne Embarks on Spoken Word Tour in New Year
9th December 2023 Coastal Rowing
Extreme adventurer Damian Browne is hosting a “spoken word tour” early in the new year on his solo rows across the Atlantic in both directions. Browne, the focus of the documentary Man Versus Ocean broadcast on RTE Television last week,…
Underwater noise levels and movement of marine mammals are being tracked in European waters by a scientific team led by Dr Joanne O’Brien and a team from the Atlantic Technological University (ATU) Galway. The devices were deployed in Turkey and…
Ireland’s expenditure of EU Brexit compensatory funding for the seafood sector is to be extended into next year. The so-called Brexit Adjustment Reserve (BAR) was paid by the EU to Ireland and other affected member states to mitigate the impact…
Crossing the Atlantic, Losing a Friendship - Man Versus Ocean Documentary on RTÉ Tonight
6th December 2023 Maritime TV
“Can you see what I see?” “ Land, land motherfxxxxxs…” “Ireland !!! I see you! Finally, the old sod is in site...” The words of transatlantic oarsman Damian Browne on day 108 of his extraordinary effort to row from New…
