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Elaine McGoff

@elainemcgoff.bsky.social
2.9K followers 557 following 462 posts

PhD. Head of Advocacy for An Taisce. Water floats my boat. 🚲 powered. Views are my own.

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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
On World Rivers Day let's remember the importance of rivers for our own wellbeing. I measure out the seasons in river swims. It gifts me resilience for my autumn, resolve for my winter, hope for my spring and pure joy for my summer. Our waters are life, let's protect them. #WorldRiversDay
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The Journal @thejournal.ie · 25/09/2026
Irish chef and food writer Darina Allen is one of more than 120 famous chefs from around the world who have signed a letter calling for ocean-farmed salmon not to be served in restaurants. jrnl.ie/7173397
jrnl.ie
Darina Allen among famous chefs calling for ocean-farmed salmon not to be served in restaurants
The increase in farmed salmon in recent decades poses a threat to the environment and wild salmon populations.
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Patrick Bresnihan @pbresnihan.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Myself, Seán Fearon and Pat Brodie have published a report today examining the exaggerated benefits and significant costs of data centres to Ireland. Below is a short thread on some of the key takeaways. Read the full report here: mural.maynoothuniversity.ie/id/eprint/21... 1/6
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Alice-Mary Higgins @aliceeire.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Yesterday I demanded answers from the Minister about the Irish Government position on shocking proposals to give AI companies access to our personal data which are being negotiated right now on Ireland's watch. The public across EU want rights protected & more regulation of AI and big tech not less!
position.to
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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
This is all fine.... 'In a leaked document, the Irish Presidency proposes to EU Member States that the interest of OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta and SpaceX to make profits should take precedence over the fundamental right to data protection.' noyb.eu/en/ai-eu-mem...
noyb.eu
AI: EU Member States plan “digital expropriation” of Europeans in the interest of AI companies
In a leaked document, the Irish Presidency proposes to EU Member States that the interest of AI companies to make profits should take precedence over the fundamental rights of Europeans.
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Ray Cunningham @ray-cunningham.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Everyone is to blame except the guy who cancelled plans to reform the RSA and roll out reduced speed limits in built-up areas www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...
irishtimes.com
Road safety minister blames ‘everyone involved’, including road users, for rising death toll
Seán Canney’s remarks come after four deaths at the weekend and as EU ministers gather to discuss road safety
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Dave Mathieson @tinydbass.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
@irishtimes.com Can you please learn to distinguish between e-bikes (legal, safe, convenient, limited to 25km/h, you have to pedal) and electric motorbikes. The picture is of the first type, the story is about the second www.irishtimes.com/crime-law/20...
irishtimes.com
Man and teenager arrested after reports of e-bikes being driven dangerously in Belfast
Police chief commends actions of officers that ‘prevented further immediate danger to road users’
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Sustainable Water Network (SWAN) @swanireland.ie · 18/09/2026
🥳Join the Big River Watch 2026! Today the Rivers Trust kicks off the Big River Watch citizen science event.  Sign up here f.mtr.cool/f1rt2blub7
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Richard Chambers @newschambers.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Breaking: In a potentially landmark decision, a major data centre project in Mayo has had planning permission overturned over climate concerns. More on @virginmedianews.bsky.social this evening.
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Nicolas Hénin @nicolashenin.net · 17/09/2026
Nice campaign by the Norwegian Consumer Council about the declining lifespan of products. Enjoy!
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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Pilgrim at Tinker Creek is a really beautiful book. RIP Annie Dillard.
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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Another EPA report showing nitrate water pollution trends going the wrong direction-the majority of which comes from farming. The weather doesn't help,but our farming system needs to adapt so fluctuating weather does not lead to water pollution.This is our new reality. www.epa.ie/publications...
Early insight average nitrogen concentrations for the January - June period of each year from 2016
to 2026 at 20 representative sites located around the country.
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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
A very good question. www.irishtimes.com/opinion/edit...
For decades the Department of Agriculture has operated as though it were a branch office of the Irish Farmers’ Association, its instincts bent reliably towards the producer and away from the consumer, the environment and the taxpayer. The Government wasted valuable European capital opposing Mercosur, a deal which will benefit many other parts of the Irish economy. It fought to keep the nitrates derogation, leaving Ireland the only EU state still spreading slurry at these levels while its waterways decline even further. The time has come to ask whether the cosy understandings and close relationships on which these policies are based really serve the country as a whole.
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Environmental Pillar @envpillar.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
@envpillar.bsky.social met with Minister Jack Chambers to outline our pre-Budget asks - investment in nature restoration, funding a fair transition from fossil fuels, investment in renewables & retrofit schemes, support for public & active transport & sustainable funding for civil society groups
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Joe Noonan @joenoonan.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Banned: Macklemore's powerful statement deserves reading. www.instagram.com/p/DdRdsy0m2H...
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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
2 different headlines in my timeline right now about how AI is going to potentially kill us, and by the way it's also spying on us. But yet, somehow, those of us questioning the ubiquity and inevitability of AI are the naïve ones? We're the problem?
Anthropic is building a predictive surveillance system to monitor activistsAnthropic official: 10% chance AI could kill all humans in a decade
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Clare Kelly @clarekelly.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Just when you think things couldn't get *more* dystopian...
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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Great to see the CCAC raising food security. How can we claim to be feeding the world, when we can't even feed ourselves? 'The council says the State’s food security is at risk and the department should review the support schemes in place to encourage more fruit and vegetable production.'
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Richard Chambers @newschambers.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Imagine if you said that the company you work for had a higher than 1 in 10 chance of ending ALL human life... do you think you might get a knock on the door? www.cnbc.com/2026/09/09/a...
cnbc.com
Anthropic researcher says AI has more than 10% chance of 'killing all humans' after colleague quits
An Anthropic safety researcher said there is a greater than 10% chance AI could "kill all humans" after a former colleague quits over safety concerns.
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Environmental Pillar @envpillar.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
We’re calling for a Budget that matches Ireland’s climate and nature commitments. Budget 2027 is an opportunity to invest in measures that protect people & ecosystems, restore nature, provide warm homes, deliver clean energy & enable sustainable transport www.environmentalpillar.ie/budget-2027-...
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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
The latest in a long line of efforts by the industrial agri lobby to try persuade people that Irish meat and dairy is wonderful. I don't know about you, but science be damned, having listened to this rap I am now fully persuaded... www.independent.ie/farming/am-i...
independent.ie
Am I old or is the new farm ad cringy?
“Cringe”. That was the word used by the person who sent me the latest “disruptive” video advertising campaign launched by Our Food Roots.
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WATERSHED Investigations @watershed-i.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Then, when we sampled water from Lough Neagh, we found genes resistant to even the strongest antibiotics in the lough - which supplies drinking water to 40% of people in NI: share.google/uHFFfxs8aiqY...
share.google
‘Drinking from a fetid pond’: superbug-creating genes found in UK’s largest lake
Exclusive: Lough Neagh, which supplies drinking water for 40% of NI, contains genes resistant to last-resort antibiotics
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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Make this make sense. Data centres are to be offered cut price gas, on the condition that they use diesel generators when gas demand is high?! That'll be wonderful for the health of all the communities saddled with these data centres, not to mention emissions. www.irishtimes.com/environment/...
irishtimes.com
Data centres in Ireland to be offered cut-price gas in return for possible supply disruption
Data-centre expansion will make it hard to source enough gas to meet demand during extreme cold events, state regulator warns
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Patrick Bresnihan @pbresnihan.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Great to see communities across Ireland organising to stop the wasteful, anti-developmental expansion of data centres. Places like Naas are where the AI arms race driven by US monopoly tech hits the ground, and where it can be resisted. www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2026...
irishtimes.com
‘We just don’t want them’: hundreds gather in a Kildare town over data centre plans
Noise issues in Clondalkin are a cautionary tale – but it’s not too late for Kildare, town meeting hears
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The Irish Times @irishtimes.com · 04/09/2026
Naas has a message for the Bond villains: We don’t want your data centres
irishtimes.com
Naas has a message for the Bond villains: We don’t want your data centres
Clondalkin is a cautionary tale – but it’s not too late for Naas, town meeting hears
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Una Mullally @unamullally.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
At a public meeting about a planned data centre in Kildare, more than double the number of expected attendees turned up.
irishtimes.com
‘We just don’t want them’: hundreds gather in a Kildare town over data centre plans
Noise issues in Clondalkin are a cautionary tale – but it’s not too late for Kildare, town meeting hears
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Geraldine Herbert @gerherbert.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Public transport fares are going up. Hi-vis and helmets are required for e-scooters. Another masterclass in encouraging sustainable travel from the Government ...
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The Journal FactCheck @factcheck.thejournal.ie · 03/09/2026
While the internet is filled with arguments denying the effects of farming on climate change, it is worth delving into one argument that methane from cow herds is harmless, as featured in a video whose popularity has endured online.
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Ed Moynihan @emcreative.ie · 03/09/2026
This is crazy on so many levels. Increasing the cost of public transport, while spending a billion euro on excise cuts for motorists, will only encourage more people to drive. Meanwhile, there's no money available for public transport projects like Dart+, BusConnects or rural town bus services.
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Una Mullally @unamullally.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
The battle to keep global heating from passing the agreed 1.5-degree threshold has been lost. This should be an era when human ingenuity works to save the planet from catastrophe. Instead the tech broligarchy is busy embarking upon ludicrous AI data centre “infrastructure” fuelled by coal and gas.
irishtimes.com
Battle to halt global heating at 1.5 degrees is lost - UN
Focus must now switch to limiting extent of overshoot, says United Nations' climate report
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Prof Julia Steinberger 🌹🌱🌍 #ClimateAction #Fightfascism @jksteinberger.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
⚠️ 🌍 ⚠️ We stand with humanity: A scientist statement to confront climate destruction⚠️ 🌍 ⚠️ ✒️ 🙏 If you are an academic or healthcare professional, please consider signing. 🙏✒️ framaforms.org/we-stand-wit...
framaforms.org
We stand with humanity: A scientist statement to confront climate destruction | Framaforms.org
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Institute for Future Food Systems @iffs-earth.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Everyone is talking about AI's water use. AI data centres are projected to consume ~1 trillion litres a year by 2028. Livestock already consumes ~228 trillion litres. Around 200x more, and more than 90% of it goes to feed. #WorldWaterWeek
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Stuart Capstick @stucap.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Pragmatic (adj.) 1. Of or relating to decision-making in the short-term interests of fossil fuel producers. 2. Neglect or ignorance of the risks of climate breakdown and need for rapid emissions reduction. 3. Naivety in regard to the promises or assumptions of unproven carbon capture technologies.
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Greenpeace International 🌍 @greenpeace.org · 31/08/2026
Shell announced they've made USD $9.8 BILLION in profits in just 3 MONTHS.⁠ ⁠ While Shell CEO Wael Sawan and his shareholders are getting richer, our planet is burning and lives are being lost to floods.⁠
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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
RIP Wendell Berry.
Image shows a screenshot of a Poem by Wendell Berry

The Peace of Wild Things

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds. 
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water. 
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
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Dirty Water Campaign @dirtywatercampaign.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Ben Jennings in The Guardian today:
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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
This is the perfect description of the rapid rollout of large scale data centres: 'monuments to climate chaos' and we are the 'dumping ground for all the AI infrastructure that other countries don’t want'
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GLOBE Ireland @globeireland.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
8 seconds of peace courtesy of the beautiful #GlencullenRiver running through #KnocksinkWoods in #Wicklow. Where is your local waterway? How does it sound, look, make you feel? #IrishRivers #RiverHealth @epaireland.bsky.social @antaisce.bsky.social @wicklowcoco.bsky.social @npwsireland.bsky.social
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Brent Toderian @brenttoderian.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
“Dutch people cycle an average of 2.6km each per day. If this pattern was replicated worldwide, annual carbon emissions would drop by 686 million tonnes. This mammoth figure exceeds the entire carbon footprint of most countries, including the UK, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Australia.” @euronews.com
euronews.com
Cycling like the Dutch would slash the world’s carbon footprint
If everybody cycled like the Dutch, we could offset the UK or Australia’s entire carbon footprint.
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Raven Books @ravenbooks.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Very disturbing to have my GP announce our session was being recorded by AI which had been integrated into their system. It's utterly unacceptable to throw this at someone in a potentially vulnerable position or to allow access to sensitive medical information without a patient's consent.
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Sustainable Water Network (SWAN) @swanireland.ie · 27/08/2026
"Implementation! Implementation! Enforcement!" Check out our Freshwater Policy Officer Dr Puneeta Sreenivas comments on Clare FM today. Listen back to the full interview here www.clare.fm/news/environmental-sci…
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Dr. Aaron Thierry @thierryaaron.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
"If you commute on an e-bike 20km a day, five days a week, your charging cost would be about $20 – annually."
theconversation.com
The world’s 280 million electric bikes and mopeds are cutting demand for oil far more than electric cars
Electric vehicles get all the press – but it’s the smaller unsung two wheelers cutting oil demand the most.
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John Gibbons 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇪🇺 @thinkorswim.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Ireland could face a near-term breakdown in our ability to import food as #climate impacts pummel global food chains, yet despite importing 80%-plus of everything we eat, we are woefully unprepared & complacent. My report in @irishexaminer.bsky.social today. www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...
irishexaminer.com
John Gibbons: Ireland needs an emergency food stockpile
Climate change and supply chain threats to our import-dependent food system should impel us to stockpile food — just as we do with oil
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Patrick Bresnihan @pbresnihan.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Stripe CEO Patrick Collison and Mario Draghi have co-founded the Rhine Group, a think tank for European revival. Appointing a Silicon Valley tech CEO with close links to the Koch brothers to 'revive' Europe is a sure sign that Europe is in sharp decline. www.businesspost.ie/tech/europe-...
businesspost.ie
‘Europe is weak’: Patrick Collison and Mario Draghi team up with new think tank
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Tom Flood @tomflood.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
the only back to school road safety tip needed via @thebikinglawyer.bsky.social
pink poster 
BACK TO SCHOOL TIPS, DRIVER EDITION
SLOW THE F
DOWN
so our kids can get to school safely
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Fred Logue @fplogue.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
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Ariel Brunner @arielbrunner.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Meanwhile the farm lobby has successfully lobbied for: More fossil fuel based fertiliser More methane emissions More diesel subsidies Easier destruction of wetlands Harder transition to resources saving &healthier plant based diets. "Food security" is weaponised to destroy our actual food security.
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Irish Environmental Network @irishenvnet.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
European environmental organisations warn ministers meeting in Dublin to resist deregulation and drive decarbonisation www.ien.ie/european-env...
ien.ie
European environmental organisations warn ministers meeting in Dublin to resist deregulation and drive decarbonisation  - Irish Environmental Network
Policy Director and Sec Gen of the EEB will attend the Informal meeting of Environment and Climate Ministers in Dublin Castle this Thursday and Friday As EU environment ministers head to Dublin for a ...
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Elaine McGoff @elainemcgoff.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Sounds familiar: 'Water UK said datacentres were already being built in water-stressed areas...Millions of people in these regions have been placed under a hosepipe ban by water companies after prolonged extreme heat and lack of rainfall.' www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Not enough water for UK’s datacentre plans, trade body says
Industry says government’s failure to address cooling demands means AI growth plans are ‘fatally flawed’
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Caroline Lucas @carolinelucas.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
Hard to think of a more deeply damaging start to Burnham’s premiership than giving green light to new oil & gas in N. Sea, if true. It won’t lower bills or lead to greater energy security but will drive an even hotter planet. What a terrible signal to give to rest of the world #ClimateVandalism
x.com
BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) on X
Andy Burnham will announce plans for new oil and gas drilling in the North Sea when he becomes prime minister on Monday, the BBC has been told. The announcement will form part of a flurry of policy m...
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