Congratulations to Garrycastle

Garrycastle's victory over local rivals St Brigid's in Longford on Saturday was a unique sporting occasion. Never in the history of the All-Ireland club senior football championship has two sides with such close and numerous links crossed swords. The game captured the imagination and attention of the people of this region for the past few months. And if the build up and sense of anticipation was remarkable, the contest itself was also memorable for its relentless intensity, its closely-fought nature and the remarkable atmosphere conjured up by the 8,000 who gathered in Pearse Park to cheer on their respective heroes. The spoils went to the men from the east of Shannon - and although it will be of absolutely no consolation for the Roscommon side, it must nevertheless be said that St Brigid's played their part in ensuring a historic encounter which will be remembered as much for what happened during the 60 minutes of play as for the lengthy build up. Garrycastle, though, must now refocus on the task at hand. Such was the physical, emotional and mental investment they put into the contest, it would be understandable if all associated with the club were a little drained by Saturday's exploits. However, St Patrick's Day is less than four weeks away and Crossmaglen Rangers are waiting in the wings in Croke Park. It is tribute to St Brigid's that they have already offered to assist Garrycastle with the knowledge gleaned from their All-Ireland final defeat to the Armagh side last March. Anthony Cunningham, his backroom team and the squad of Garrycastle players have one further test of their talents. East and west of the Shannon and across the Athlone region, irrespective of your club loyalties, they deserve all our support on St Patrick's Day. EPA report blows hole in septic tank charge rationale News that nearly half of Ireland's wastewater treatment plants serving urban centres are failing to achieve national and EU standards has shown up once again the folly of blaming rural householders for water pollution. The latest report released by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has seriously undermined the case for the controversial septic tank registration and inspection regime. The main findings of the new report are that 46% of waste water treatment plants did not meet all waste water quality standards or EPA guidelines. Commenting on the Report, Dara Lynott, Director, Office of Environmental Enforcement said: "Meeting our EU targets will require substantial and sustained investment. " This paper has previously stated that the main culprits in polluting Ireland's waterways are State bodies and in particular local authorities. The contrast between the focus on planned investment in urban wastewater treatment plants over the next few years, to the benefit of urban householders, and the likely draconian inspection regime and potential charges on rural septic tank users could not be clearer. As Marian Harkin MEP said: "What has been revealed in this report is that the threat to the quality of Ireland's waters and the country's ability to meet targets set under the EU Water Framework Directive comes largely from the state and not from septic tanks. This in turn highlights the unfairness inherent in government policy which seeks to penalise septic tanks owners while making insufficient investment in a sector which represents a third of the country's population." It's time we stopped blaming rural dwellers for pollution and faced up to the truth.