Horizons

Risks to biodiversity at sea: The failure of European ministers to give their commitment to halting biodiversity loss in the North Sea by 2010 has been criticised by Seas At Risk, the pan-European environmental lobby organisation.

At a meeting in Gothenburg, Sweden, earlier this month, European fisheries and environment ministers agreed on a fisheries ecosystem plan and technical guidelines for assessing the environmental impact of fishing.

According to Seas At Risk, these measures will not halt biodiversity loss and will instead mean the 2010 target will be missed. The nub of the issue, according to Seas At Risk, is the failure to remove charges for depositing waste in ports. "The illegal dumping of ship waste at sea will be properly dealt with only when North Sea states remove the financial obstacles to the use of port waste reception facilities," says Monica Verbeek, fisheries policy officer at Seas at Risk. See www.seas-at-risk.org

Midlands tourism initiative

Environmentally friendly options for local tourism will be explored at the Real Green Tourism conference in Kinnitty Castle, Kinnitty, Co Offaly on Tuesday. "The midlands have been under-promoted in terms of tourism in the past and we want to create an awareness of the local culture, food, music and place," says Christina Byrne, the chairwoman of the Slieve Bloom Rural Development Co-operative Society. The society is developing five eco-walks to highlight such features as the Slieve Bloom nature reserve, which has the largest stretch of blanket bog in Europe. Speakers include Dr John Feehan of the department of environmental resource management at UCD; Duncan Stewart, architect and energy consultant; and Conor Brady, former editor of The Irish Times. Admission free. For details, contact Slieve Bloom Eco-Tourism and Biodiversity Project, Kinnitty Community Centre, Kinnitty, Co Offaly, tel: 057-9137862, www.slievebloom.ie

Young things in museums

The challenges for museums and galleries in attracting young people to "take ownership" of their heritage, culture and museums' collections will be debated at a day-long conference in the National Museum of Country Life, Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co Mayo on Thursday, which is International Museums Day. Speakers from the National Museums and Galleries of Wales will talk about their innovative community projects. Admission free. Tel: 094-9031751 or e-mail educationtph@museum.ie for more details. Féile na Tuaithe will be held at the same venue next Saturday and Sunday from 11am-5pm each day. Events include craft demonstrations, organic products for sale, lectures, music and children's entertainment.

Register for Heritage Week

The Heritage Council is encouraging community and environmental groups to organise and register events to be run during Heritage Week, August 26th to September 3rd. "We want to promote the benefits of protecting and enjoying our natural and built heritage and its links to our sense of well-being and community," says Isabell Smyth from the Heritage Council. See www.heritageweek.ie or tel: 1850-200878.