Our group had been working until about 16th January, with four from the group litter picking , two working on the flowerbed at the sidings, while the rest focused on edgings around the village. However it has come to our attention that Covid numbers are rising rapidly locally so we sadly made the decision to stop our work until restrictions are lifted, or until the numbers have reduced.
Almost a year since the start of the pandemic, and in the recent past we have noticed how people’s behaviour has changed. Litter now consists of discarded disposable masks which can be found on the roadsides, on the beach and have made their way to the marine environment. They can be observed at the high water mark. Please dispose of them properly!
There has also been a marked increase of people who do not pick up after their dogs, especially in the Dunes near the Coast Tavern. We were wondering was it COVID related and a symptom of people being fed up because of lockdown, or is it just people not caring about the environment. Time is a great healer and it remains to be seen what happens when things return to “Normal”!
Elsewhere in the village things are looking well. Our boat, which was so well restored by James Ellis and David Conroy, is still looking great!
Laytown plant boat 
Buxus spiral trees in Laytown Laytown Insect hotel
All our flowerbeds and planters have been cleared of weeds by Mairead over the past few months…….great job Mairead! Thanks also to the rest of the team for all their (socially distanced!) hard work for the last few months!
Our buxus spiral trees have been rejuvenated in their new sheltered location on the approach road, and our insect hotel is looking very well too!
Our group are looking forward to being able to resume our activities, but for the time being we feel it is wiser to respect the restrictions. We know that there are people who want to join us and look forward to meeting you hopefully in the next few weeks. In the meantime take care and stay safe.