Towns and villages in the midlands should know by this month if they are to have public access to the information networks which are currently being installed by cable companies.
The Minister for Public Enterprise, Mrs O'Rourke, has asked the major communications providers to bring forward proposals on how rural areas can link into the broadband networks being deployed across the State.
Those companies whose proposals meet the Minister's criteria for advancing public access and include provisions for the disadvantaged stand to benefit from grant aid of up to 40 per cent of the costs of their networks. Some £60 million is available in grant aid.
The deadline for submissions to the Minister is September 22nd. Mr Jim Stone, director of the Midlands Regional Authority, has been holding discussions with the major companies involved to find the best, and most freely available form of access to the networks.
"It has huge implications for us," said Mr Stone. "The centres of population will be connected anyway, but we are looking at small towns and villages where people might have access to all local council and government business without having to travel. Also the proposals should inform us how this can be achieved for those who can't afford computer terminals in their homes."
Another aspect awaiting clarification is whether it is feasible to connect all remote areas with cable or whether radio and satellite communications have a role to play. "We are looking to the public service elements of these proposals with great interest," he said.
By coincidence, September 22nd is also the deadline for the Border, Midlands and Western (BMW) regional assembly to receive the fine details of where £3.203 billion, the amount of the regional operational programme, is to be spent.
In the midlands, the regional authority has been hosting seminars on how to prevent a further widening of the gap between the disadvantaged and others. As all plans now have to be "poverty-proofed" the regional authority has been holding seminars for local authorities on what this means for them and the State agencies involved. "It is a matter of getting our thinking caps on to see how we can apply the National Anti-Poverty Strategy to the midlands," said Mr Stone.
The authority is also hoping the regional waste management strategy can be implemented, despite a lack of enthusiasm from some councillors for the thermal treatment elements of the plan.
While Westmeath, Offaly and Tipperary North have accepted the strategy, Laois councillors have decided not to implement new measures for a five-year period, a move which is the subject of legal advice.
Indeed there are rumblings that Tipperary North may not be included in the midlands plan, opting instead for an arrangement with another regional authority, such as Limerick. Longford will be the last county in the arrangement to vote on the strategy in October.
"If we don't have some form of thermal treatment, we would welcome some clarification on what the alternatives are. Landfill can only guarantee non-leachate for 20 years. It is a political hot potato. Even if the Minister takes the painful decision away from local councillors and insists on thermal treatment, that hardly enhances our striving towards the empowerment of councils, does it?" said Mr Stone.
Another item of concern to the regional authority is the future of the turf-powered ESB generating stations in Offaly. As the viability of using peat to generate electricity diminishes, due to greenhouse gas emissions and environmental concerns in relation to the bogs, the prospect of the power stations becoming redundant looms.
"What the regional authority is aiming for is an assurance that there will be a spur from the Corrib field gas pipeline," said Mr Stone. The gas pipeline which will come ashore on the west coast will cross the Republic, linking up with the gas grid, and the pipe bringing gas to Dublin from Kinsale. "It is vital for the future of employment in the region that the generating stations have access to the gas and we will be seeking that commitment at regional and national level," said Mr Stone.