“I nearly choked on my cornflakes!” Former Warrenpoint Port worker Tony Morgan calmly dismantles a waste company’s Orwellian attempts to distract attention from their own smell by blaming anyone but themselves in a recent advertorial.

“But really, an area such as the Mournes, the most visited upland area in Northern Ireland, I think our reasonable expectation is of more sustained statutory funding rather than a charity having to go and look for resources elsewhere that are increasingly hard to find."💯 www.bbc.com/news/article...

Another body blow to the credibility of Warrenpoint Harbour Authority (WHA) and Regen Waste’s deeply unsustainable waste operation as WHA Community Forum member Fionnuala McKinley announces her resignation from the Forum.

“Workers, farmers, and small business people will not tolerate for any length of time a pattern of economic organization in which they are subject to periodic dramatic fluctuations in their daily economic circumstances.”

Exploring the hidden “Kingdom of the Stick People” in Lillesand, Norway ✨ The “Disneyfication” of nature and folklore often feels a bit excessive these days, but quirky and creative characters like this can make the outdoors feel a little more magical for children and grownups alike.

Forest bathing in Rostrevor rainforest 🌿

Clearing the way: a small act to remove barriers in Kilbroney Forest Park, Rostrevor 🌳

A sign of neglect in Kilbroney Park, Rostrevor… Newry and Mourne District Council hasn’t existed since 2015. Over 10 years later, this is still here next to the playground in the park.

Rostrevor Aurora Community Cinema will be screening the Oscar-winning animated film Flow at Kilbroney Integrated School this Friday 🐈‍⬛

Private Eye’s 1.1 million readers can now see timely light being shone on a floundering Council and the odorous waste partnership of Warrenpoint Harbour Authority and Re-Gen Waste Ltd operations in Warrenpoint Port. Please sign and share the petition ⬇️ my.actnowni.org/petitions/ti...

“You have no right to be here” moves easily, with the slip of a comma, to “you have no right to be here, there, or anywhere.” If those that own the land can dictate what happens on the land, then this private elite can conduct those in society who have nowhere else to be but the land.”

Like St Patrick and every arrival from long before, we all came from somewhere and have our own ideas about where we are going next. May we think twice before fighting over our differences, and instead find time to share and celebrate both them and the life-sustaining nature that connects us all.

Regarding rewilding outcomes, can we really claim with full confidence and certainty that they will be positive for nature (and people)? @rewildingire.bsky.social @petecairns.bsky.social @landethics.bsky.social @donnarainey4.bsky.social @pettorelli.bsky.social @georgeholmes.bsky.social

Deeply disturbing and shocking news from Rostrevor where 13 lambs were brutally killed this weekend. If anyone has any information, dashcam footage or CCTV please contact the PSNI. www.bbc.com/news/article...

“…gates could soon be put up to close off the popular Warrenpoint breakwater pier, which has been open to the public for the last 50 years.” Hopefully this doesn’t happen. Does anyone remember when Rostrevor pier used to be open to the public? www.belfastlive.co.uk/news/norther...

Council blocks information request about Kilbroney Park maintenance ❌ Recently we’ve had some success obtaining information from Newry, Mourne and Down Council about Kilbroney Park, most notably details about the revenue generated from the controversial parking charges. 1/6

“Yet often the mountain gives itself most completely when I have no destination, when I reach nowhere in particular, but have gone out merely to be with the mountain as one visits a friend with no intention but to be with them.” - Nan Shepherd ⛰

Not to sound like a dose but there is no way on earth that these baths that look over this spectacular view, would be left to dilapidate an be barred from use by the public for decades in Australia. Different mindset irrespective of weather, it’s just abysmal

Congratulations to a plumber by trade, Green Party’s Hannah Spencer, who celebrates a clear victory in the Gorton and Denton by-election this morning and heads for Westminster while traditional “major” parties and their billionaire donors are left to ponder on where exactly they are leaking.

Idiots.

Newry, Mourne and Down Council has the highest debt of any local authority in Northern Ireland: £68 million. This petition calls on those responsible for squandering our money to stop and step back while others set about finding a better way forward. Please sign ⬇️ my.actnowni.org/petitions/ti...

“The thing is, a world before plastic is within living memory, and returning to aspects of it is hardly like going back to the stone age. You only have to look back to our grandparents’ time, or even our parents’ time. We can use much less plastic…” www.theguardian.com/environment/...

“In a time of deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” No, the Alliance Party did not conjure up a figure about 100 climate related deaths per year in Northern Ireland. It comes from a widely reported study published last year. 1/n

Don't miss Carlingford Lough Keepers’ next event at Newry Gateway Club at 2pm this Sunday 22nd Feb. Learn of the natural and cultural history of this area of outstanding beauty and listen to songs and stories from around the Lough! All welcome!

Thanks to The Irish News for highlighting this important story about how Newry, Mourne and Down Council are exploiting our forest parks, including Kilbroney, and people by viewing them through the cold lens of money 🌳 www.irishnews.com/news/norther...

Did you know there’s a new Forest School just 30 minutes from Newry? 🌳 Courses are for adults and children and aim to reconnect people with nature through activities such as shelter building, tool use and nature exploration. If you’re curious to learn more, have a look at the article below.

We need to stop idolizing billionaires for “saving” forests and nature. The system that creates billionaires and drives biodiversity loss is the same: capitalism. Real change means transforming that system not applauding the ultra-rich, especially those with shady friends like Andrew Windsor.

The excerpt below is from a fascinating chapter in the classic book “Mourne Country” about the traditions that once regulated the harvesting and use of seaweed - a vital resource as a fertiliser, fuel, and food. 1/2

“Very toxic to aquatic life with long-lasting effects” Agriculture pollutes, but the waste industry is choking the life out of our waters too. Metres from Carlingford Lough, household waste is sprayed with a cocktail of chemicals in Warrenpoint, while those in power continue to look away.

The sun won't set earlier than it did today again until around Halloween... .. a thought that might help some others cope with this dreary time of year.

Newry, Mourne and Down District Council has collected over £1.1 million from controversial Forest Park parking charges in 20 months and now plans to install access barriers in Kilbroney Park ✋ 🛑 Full details and local reaction on our Facebook post, which has received 80k views this weekend.

“£8.1 million has already been spent on this project.” Unbelievable. Meanwhile our roads are full of potholes that damage cars and put drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists at risk. How can this level of spending be justified, and who is actually accountable?

“Unintended consequences of human action continue to have a devastating impact on the natural world” No. Biodiversity loss is not “unintended”. It is the built-in cost of an economic system that demands perpetual expansion. Conservation leaders should call this out. www.ox.ac.uk/climate-and-...

A periodic reminder that very little has been done to address the biodiversity crisis www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

In the Irish language, the goldfinch is known as 'lasair choille' (pronounced 'lasser-quilla'), which means... The Flame of the Forest! 🔥

Cornerstone are proposing to install a 40 metre tall 5G phone mast at the caravan site in Kilbroney Park, Rostrevor. They claim it is “appropriate for the surrounding area.” If you have any comments or concerns, please email them to Cornerstones’s planning consultant: [email protected]

SOMETHING NEW: Since SO MANY great new books on cities, city-building & urbanism have been published since I did my “Top 100” List back in 2013, on 100 (non-consecutive) days I’ll profile 100 NEWER BOOKS for the #UrbanismBookClub in THIS thread! Starting today (in no order), with “Messy Cities!” 1/

If post-Brexit border control posts are no longer needed, what should happen to the one in Warrenpoint beside the new Narrow Water Bridge? Could it be transformed into a space that welcomes visitors, supports local businesses, and celebrates the area? www.bbc.com/news/article...

Pod of this week’s Last Word on the Environment on Today FM now available. We discussed ongoing flooding and I stressed need to look to nature-based solutions, such as Room for the River, that are cost effective and WORK. Dredging, on the other hand, doesn’t. www.todayfm.com/podcasts/the...

Shore to Shore! We’re looking forward to learning and sharing with our neighbours around the shores of Carlingford Lough and The Cooley Peninsula at these two events in Carlingford and Newry next month, hosted by Carlingford Lough Keepers.

This massive Canadian agtech company has put in an application to harvest seaweed from basically the entire west coast. The maps are actually shocking www.gov.ie/en/departmen...

When environmentalists are accused of obstructing “progress”, it’s worth taking a moment to question what exactly progress means. Because too often it seems to mean short-term economic growth and profit, rather than development that respects the environment and the needs of local communities.

Nature is our first line of defence against floods 🌱 Forests and wetlands act like giant sponges, soaking up heavy rain and releasing it slowly. When we pave them over and straighten streams, the water has nowhere to go and floods follow. When we protect nature, we protect ourselves 🌍

“It’s time for America & the world to move on from a social order in which unregulated profit is the driving force. When it comes, I hope & believe the new order will be based on co-operation instead of monopoly, sharing instead of grasping, & mutual helpfulness will replace the law of the jungle.”

NMDD Council has approved the removal of the much-used pontoon at Warrenpoint Breakwater. Many locals are asking why and who called for it be removed - with some suspecting the Warrenpoint Harbour Authority. Details and reaction on the “What’s the Point” Facebook page.

Infrastructure for what kind of development? A single DC in West Dublin (employing a handful of people) uses 10x the energy of a nearby pharmaceutical plant that employs 2000 people, and enough energy for 200,000 homes. Great work from @lnbdublin.bsky.social www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

Join us for our 3rd annual Celebrating Starlings event, when together we take in the mesmerising beauty of starling murmurations, learn a bit about this fantastic bird's ecology, and hear the story of Belfast's Albert Bridge murmuration! For more info, go to: www.wildbelfast.org/events-1/cel...

“We long for belonging, for community, for the sense of a village. Yet an uncomfortable truth is becoming harder to ignore: we want all the benefits of community without accepting the responsibilities that make community possible.” kasperbenjamin.substack.com/p/everyone-w...