We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
THE ESB IS to keep the iconic Poolbeg chimneys in Dublin.
The towers ceased being functional in 2010 and the ESB last year said that continuing to repair them wasn’t a good use of their resources.
That prompted outcry among many in the capital and beyond, with the chimney stacks holding a special place in the hearts of many.
Today, the ESB said that the chimneys, built in 1969 and 1977, will stay standing.
The semi-state will carry out maintenance works that will protect the chimneys while more extensive works, such as painting and sealing the concrete outer shell, will be evaluated in the coming years.
Leo Varadkar / TwitterPoolbeg chimneys saved! Great news for this iconic Dublin landmark. Well done ESB. #dubw pic.twitter.com/FtL1RnU1rQ
— Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) April 29, 2015
A spokesperson for ESB said; “The chimneys are a well known landmark in the Dublin skyline, distinguished by their height, as Dublin does not have significant high rise development.
The spokesperson added that metal caps will be placed on the chimneys.
The caps will not change their look but will prevent rainwater ingress and damage. Work will commence later this week on the wider of the two chimneys, while the second chimney will be capped in the Autumn.
“This remedial work will have no impact on the operation of the adjacent Poolbeg 470 mega watt gas turbine plant.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Publishing a story at 5 minutes past midnight is a great way to pay lip service to an issue without risking drawing too much attention to it.
@*The* Brendan Gordon: Doesn’t have anything to do with LTBG.
@*The* Brendan Gordon: sure it will still be there first thing in the morning for everyone to read..
@*The* Brendan Gordon: they usually publish something important this time every night for everyone to read in morning…
Yea, you can scroll down past this mornings useless poll or the inevitable “wrap up, it’s going to be cold sometime within the next week” stories.
@Yorkie1892: most casual readers don’t scroll down that far or do a comprehensive catch up. It’s the online equivalent of burying a story on page 12
It’s shocking but no surprise, gardai had to intervene when a group of u s soldiers where strolling around Shannon town in full uniform. Irish neutrality is as real as snow in the sahara
And there are still a ton of flights never allowed near our airspace. Bombers, fighters, attack choppers, gunships, tank busters etc (actual war planes) are NOT allowed. Refuellers very rarely get through Irish airspace and those that do need special clearance. The Americans are declaring when they have military weapons and ammo on board, so well done them!
Oh and we are not neutral, we have agreements in place with the RAF so that they can protect us in a 911 type situation and depend on them when the Russians start snooping along our western boundaries. We do not have the defence forces to protect our so called neutrality. Check out how the Swedish and Swiss are able to at least try and defend their neutrality.
Grow up moaners and get over it!
@Paul Furey: Exactly…we’re actually quite strategically important stuck as we are in the mid Atlantic…and the whole idiotic idea that we’re in anyway neutral actually prevents us from fully capitalising on something that’s happening anyway. Besides it’s impossible for us to be truly neutral the way the world is at the moment…even traditionally neutral Switzerland aren’t really neutral anymore because being neutral would mean allowing the Iranians, the Iraqis (Saddams lot), the Afghanis(The Taliban) and about a dozen other entities the same things we grant the Americans, British and Russians…and even Ming and Mick aren’t that bloody stupid…
Absolutely no problem with it. Maybe the J could also do a piece on who exactly the Shannonwatch group are – members, structure, spokespeople, funding etc.
@Matt Connolly: Nothing on their website except for a PO BOX number and Gmail address, nothing against ICANN WHOIS, but their Facebook page brings up 0878225087. And according to a Google search, this phone number is part of what’s known as “Euro-Asia Centre” and based in the University of Limerick. All available and online in the public domain. Maybe the number on the Facebook page is wrong!
https://www.bizireland.com/euro-asia-centre-087-822-5087
Google returned this also when searching on the mobile
If it was Ireland been attack you wouldn’t have a problem with American soldiers coming to Shannon airport .
@Paul Smith: Who would attack us? Nobody who hasn’t actively meddled in the middle East has been attacked. If anything getting involved makes us more likely to be attacked. Aside from that, most of their wars are unjustifiable and we shouldn’t support them for moral reasons.
@SC: most wars are unjust. Well that’s a matter of opinion . Many wars are justified and the right thing to do . The consequences of not going to war could result in a greater loss of life . Nobody is going to invade Ireland . That’s why you have the option of been Neutral . Many countries don’t have that option .
@Paul Smith: Says who? You? It must be correct with your generalising assumptions then Paul. Im not happy with them passing through. America being at war the past 222 out of 229 years says something to me and are people trying to invade them? Not in my lifetime but theyve sure as hell killed millions upon millions around the world in the name of ‘peace’…. Fighting terror they say-they are the terror in my opinion and Id prefer to call on anybody but the US if we’re attacked.
@Daimhín De Naois: tell that to the people of Rwanda where a million died . You probably think the right thing to do was not to intervene . Over 40 countries served in Afghanistan. They obviously don’t agree with ya either .
@Paul Smith: More assumptions. You shouldnt. Rwanda? The US knew it was coming, hailed Musevini as a hero and ramped up aid while selling more military equipment in the years of the genocide than they had in the past 40 and him the architect and they KNEW. Youre right, tell that to the people of Rwanda.
I used to have a lot of time for Shane Ross.
Any word of where these munitions were headed?
Patricia McKenna had all this layed out 20 years ago ffx!!
And wasn’t there a “UFO” spotted over Shannon airspace last week?!
Chances are, another “weapon of war”
Thank God we’ve learned from all those articles and comments over the last few days about how awful war is, especially imperialist war. Well done, Ireland! Lest we forget!
@Paul Devlin: I’d say nearly everyone old enough on the planet already knew how awful war is and didn’t really need to learn from all those articles and comments over the last few days. Strange you only found out now. Oh well!
Nothing about how much it cost them, as long as they keep paying €€€
There are the military arms and equipment that are bringing wars and famine in the Middle East. So the next time there is a commemoration for the Irish famine, just remember we are helping driving one in Yemen.
Keep telling yourself we are “Neural” clearly Ireland has chosen sides!
Keeps the tills in the duty free shop full
Purchases of anything Oirish by the troops is always good .
people still think we wont be a target for ISIS!!!!!!!!!
@Brian Kelleher: Lefties Love ISIS, it’s a weird world.
@Thomas Molloy: Stop being silly. Lefties like whom?
@Paul Furey: He’s talking about those snowflake liberal cucks. Apologies if I missed out on any other trendy buzzwords.
Must be a quite night, normally get messages landing at Shannon 4 times a year
Define munitions of war. The definition is so broad it could mean anything from a harmless smoke canister to a nuclear bomb.
Money talks
Neutral!????
We cannot be neutral against the Taliban or Al Qaeda. I suppose the looney left in this country have a history of supporting terrorists.
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
have your say