Lahinch Clean Up: Blitz spirit and the little things.

Less than one week after the second of two ferocious storms smashed into our lovely hometown, the people of the community displayed a camaraderie and blitz spirit that has transformed the ruined promenade.

The front line: Volunteers face the sea that threatened the town.

The receding sea water has left behind in a silver lining in its wake as the closely knit town is more tightly bonded than ever.

On the Friday morning when I took part the number who volunteered seemed to my untrained eye close to two hundred although foolishly I did not have the presence of mind to do a rough headcount.

This says a lot about the town, the people of Clare and maybe even humanity in general. In times of crisis we can pull together and do what needs to be done.

Up and down the west coast people have done what was needed to help friends’ neighbours and strangers through their time of crisis.

In my 36 years I have never been so directly connected to such a display of unity. I have seen efforts like this in the news alright, read about them in the history books but it has never been so close to my front door.

Maybe I am being overly optimistic but I felt Friday’s operation offered a glimmer of hope for the future.

I think the majority of right thinking people can now subscribe to climate change as a man made phenomenon. I hope I am wrong but I would expect to see more weather events like this in the next few years. It is scientific fact that average global mean temperatures are rising and it seems likely that humankind is to blame. Would it be idealistic to think that we can pull together and do what needs to be done?

Noah enjoying the playground built by the community.

I am nowhere near as conscious of my environmental footprint as I should be. I watch my energy usage and plan my journeys out of financial not environmental consciousness. With two children who, by God’s grace will live long after I have gone, surely my personal environmental legacy should weigh heavily on my mind.

 According to an online carbon  calculator my driving alone, which I guessed at a very conservative 8000 miles per year, produces 2.34 metric tonnes of CO² per year. In spite of my best efforts I manage to do more damage to the atmosphere than probably all the humans in the world put together before 1700.

I have all the excuses. I need a car to fulfill my parental responsibilities and get to college which I tell myself will provide a better future for my kids. I need somewhere safe and warm, fueled by electricity to raise my kids. None of my wants seem extravagant or particularly selfish  but it goes to show how hard it is as a first world inhabitant to lead a life with minimal environmental impact.

During Fridays clean up I saw a way that a difference could be made. All over the car-park and golf course was litter and debris, small papers bits of rope, empty bottles and other odds and sods of man-made flotsam. The little bits that I managed to stuff into a black bag seemed frustratingly inconsequential. It took ages to disentangle the bits of litter from the grass in just one square meter. I did not want to look up at the thousands of square metres affected for fear of becoming disheartened and returning to my four wheeled CO² making machine. I promised myself I would stick at it with everyone else and when I finally dared to look up and take stock of the land around my spirits lifted.

The previously litter, strewn grass looked as it did before the storm. Lots of people tackling lots of little areas had made a huge difference. Maybe that is a lesson? Maybe that lesson is where hope lies?

In times of crisis we have what it takes. Check out the link below to see how lots of little changes can help.

Ten simple ways to reduce your carbon footprint

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