Results 621-640 of 669 for speaker:Grace O'Sullivan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: I am very concerned about the fact that waste is reused and recycled and could be ending up as a fertiliser on our land. Is that possible?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: Essentially, through the use of this sludge on land, the plastic is being dug into our soil. Even if it is just being used for tillage, it is nevertheless part of a bigger ecosystem. With other species, even if we go to our lugworm-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: -----it is very invasive across all ecosystems.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: On eco-toxicology, one thing we have been hearing about in the media is the particles of plastic, be they micro, macro or nano of this polymer if one looks at the base. Can Dr. Mahon tell us something about this eco-toxicology and how the plastic might attract other chemicals? Not only does one have the polymer - that little bit of plastic - but one also has an accumulation of toxins around...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: I know this is very specific but I am a member of the Joint Committee on Climate Action. Dr. Mahon referred to leakage or emissions. They are hydrocarbon-based and, therefore, with regard to climate change, is plastic in general a negative for the ecosystem?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: I have a question for Dr. Lynch. He spoke about microplastics but this legislation does not deal with them.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: It deals with microbeads as opposed to microplastics.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: Does this legislation go far enough? Microplastics come from the synthetic clothes that we wear.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: It then gets into the ecosystem.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: Where does the funding for the witnesses' research come from?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: Is industry working with the witnesses to try to solve this problem?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: There are also the local authorities in terms of filtration systems.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018: Discussion (12 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: Are the delegates carrying out research into the ecotoxicology aspect and the potential of these plastics to attract other chemicals? We have talked very much about the environmental impact, but we have not gone into the health impact of these particles in different products. In her presentation Ms Dean spoke about the industry taking voluntary action, which is to be welcomed, but in...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (19 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: I commend Senator Marie-Louise O'Donnell on her contribution. I acknowledge our poets and writers through the generations and their contribution to biodiversity. I ask the Leader to let the Minister know of an article by Dr. Liam Lysaght, director of the National Biodiversity Data Centre in Waterford, in today's edition of The Irish Times. His article acknowledges the loss of biodiversity...

Seanad: National Minimum Wage (Protection of Employee Tips) Bill 2017: Committee Stage (20 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: This proposal will be welcomed by members of the unions in the Gallery, particularly the Union of Students in Ireland. I acknowledge that it is not just students who avail of tips. People of different ages and generations work in the hospitality sector. Like my colleague, Senator Alice-Mary Higgins, I worked in the hospitality sector, in a café in Tramore, as a single mother with...

Seanad: Update on Implementation of National Forestry Programme: Statements (27 Feb 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: I welcome the Minister of State to the Chamber. Before I respond directly to the matter in hand, I wish to bring people's attention to the issue of trees being felled in public and private areas over the past two weeks. I have received a flood of emails and tweets from just about every county, as has the Green Party, about the extent of tree felling around the country. There is a sadness...

Seanad: The Future of Europe and the Value of European Union Membership to Ireland: Statements (5 Mar 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: I thank the Minister of State for coming to the Chamber this evening. I watched her presentation from my office but I am sorry I was not here in person. Like other colleagues in the Chamber, I recognise her contribution and role in the negotiations around Brexit, as well as the time and effort she is giving to it. It is a very sincere effort. We are at the point where it very much looks...

Seanad: European Parliament Elections (Amendment) Bill 2019: Second Stage (6 Mar 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: I was very disappointed that my amendment was ruled out of order. It dealt with election postering. It fits into the issue we are discussing today and, though I accept the Chairman's judgment-----

Seanad: European Parliament Elections (Amendment) Bill 2019: Second Stage (6 Mar 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: The Senator is in the Cathaoirleach's chair. So many groups support this, including Tidy Towns.

Seanad: European Parliament Elections (Amendment) Bill 2019: Second Stage (6 Mar 2019)

Grace O'Sullivan: On the Bill itself, I am unhappy with the current proposal to simply put the last two elected MEPs in stasis or in limbo in the Dublin and Ireland South constituencies.This is not a fair way of doing it and the same party is at risk of being penalised twice. My office sought to submit amendments for alternative proposals but found the process deeply complex so we were unable to do so. One...