We have all been enjoying the spell of fabulous weather that graced these shores in the summer just past. It was delightful to see people, so long confined to barracks, as it were, out and about again enjoying an ice cream, a stroll in the park, or indulging in one of our favourite pastimes: taking a dip in the cool waters off our coast.
Sadly, the revoking of its blue flag status has put paid to that pleasure at Merrion-Sandymount Strand. (Portmarnock, Killiney and Seapoint are the only remaining blue flag beaches in Dublin). This is not just an inconvenience to lovers of the deep blue, but with the amount of bacterial effluent in the water, can actually be hazardous to health (see Pgs. 26-7 for an in depth analysis). Irish Water and the local authorities need to get their act together to save our water. And, as citizens, we all need to play our part. When out walking and enjoying the lovely scenery, let’s stop leaving litter (including clothes, plastic bottles, even nappies!) behind, and clean up after our pets (something, sadly, not enough people are doing). Our beaches and waters are a precious commodity that must be
protected for the future.
And protecting our future- be it housing, health care, or the elderly, was foremost to mind when NewsFour recently met Dublin Bay South’s newest member of Parliament, Ivana Bacik. You can read the interview on Pgs. 8-9.
Elsewhere, in this issue we feature a cultural celebration that is the magnificent Round Room 200 exhibition in the Mansion House (Pg. 4); a room built for a king, and which fittingly became the chamber of the inaugural meeting of Dáil Éireann, ushering in a free and democratic State. This is an exhibition we urge everyone, allowing for restrictions, to go and see.
Finally, always finding ways to improve the service we bring to you, we are excited to introduce Google Pages, our new centre page feature bringing you all the latest community info. Thanks to Teresa and all the team at Google.
So, do enjoy what’s left of the summer and remember, as always, take care of each other.
