TRICYCLE

This is a crippled gentleman Noeline met, who works at the leper clinic as an accountant or book-keeper. He has polio and he walks on two crutches which we had supplied earlier, but it’s a long way to go. Noeline managed to get him this wheelchair. It is like a tricycle as well and he can pedal it with his hands. These are quite rare out in Ghana –you see them a lot in India. Noeline paid 300 euro to get a second-hand one. It belonged to some-one who died. Noeline bought it and got it restored for this man.

Noeline Haylett

STAR SCHOOL GHANA

Books arriving to the Star secondary school form County Mayo.

Pupils at the Star secondary school

This is Star School in Ghana. There is a lottery system where children get awarded a place at secondary school. These children’s names would not have come through the lottery system, so when they did their Junior Cert, their names didn’t come up to go to leaving. So this man started a school in a shed, as you can see and they are going to do all their subjects for leaving cert. 65% of the books they us come from County Mayo.





Noeline Haylett

FULLETON POLLAN DAM INISHOWEN

The Fullerton Pollan Dam in Inishowen,named after Eddie Fullerton, has great fishing facilities. Further downstraem the problem of fluoridation is still a bit of an issue (see more)

CHEAPER RECYCLING COSTS FOR INISHOWEN?

Paul Doherty from Inishowen Recycling has said that he will knock 25% off of the current wheelie bin disposal rates charges by Logan Waste. Carndonagh recycling centre are still pushing ahead with their on site charges so method of waste disposal this might make a better alternative (although not producing the waste in the first place would be a better option).

"There will be a price war" said Padraig McLaughlainn from Sinn Fein ,who is supporting the initiative. Padraig is also accusing the Water and Environment section of Donegal County Council of incompetence in their management of recycling services around the peninsula (complain here!). He is to contact Michael McLoone the County manager to undertake a review.

See the complete list of Inishowen Waste Disposal Companies

See an older article about the recycling centre in Carndonagh

Not so happy now...The civic amenity centres are now charging

FRENCH DRAINS

I have a problem with water building up behind a new retaining wall in the garden. How can I drain it without disturbing the foundations? Thanks T.W. By e-mail

Reply
You could put in a French Drain. A French drain is a drain with no pipe. The water collects in a gravel or stone filled channel that starts from the surface of just below it. The advantage of a French drain is that is easy to construct and with the use of modern ground fabrics very efficient.

Stage One
First you need to dig a trench behind the wall, away from the foundations, about 15cm wide and as deep as required with a fall off 1 in 100 so that the water flows. Next the trench should be lined with ground sheeting which is available at most builders’ merchants. This sheeting allows water to pass through, but not the soil particles such as silt and clay that often block drains after a number of years.

Stage Two
Fill the trench inside the sheeting with a clean stone, 20mm is ideal or clean broken bricks. The trench can be filled to the surface or filled to about 10cm below the surface and the sheeting wrapped around it. Then backfilled with topsoil over the top.

Stage Three
The drain will need to end in a soak away. This is a large cube shaped hole lined with porous ground sheeting and filled with clean gravel or clean rubble. The idea is that when the drain is working the water runs into the soakaway and over a few hours soaks (away) into the surrounding ground soil. For this reason it is best to pick an area of land that drains freely!

HEDGEROW VEHICLES

Old Morris Minor