By Andy Spearman
Say what you like about Frank Godfrey, and everyone has their own opinion, but since the early seventies he has campaigned on many issues affecting the lives of people in the Drogheda area which he says is something he is passionate about.
Frank has had a long and very colourful career in local politics and no doubt someday someone will write a book about it. He lost his seat on the Council at the last elections but it doesn’t take a genius to know that he wants it back and he is on the campaign trail already.
After three or more years of living quietly life getting his cottage in Donore into shape and the museum in his back yard up and running, Frank is back on the road.
Last week he hit the headlines of local and national media with his campaign to rid the town of pesky seagulls which are doing what seagulls do – scavenging for food wherever they can get it and shitting on people, their cars and windows. Up with this Frank will not put!
This week Frank has turned his attention to the reservoir at Rosehall which is a place of beauty and serenity that few but members of the Drogheda Anglers Club will have experienced.
Some years ago it was proposed to shut Rosehall Reservoir but the experience of prolonged water outages following a burst water main at the Staleen Water plant in 2017 which left people queuing in the street for bottles of water, has made us all realise that this is a precious commodity without which nothing can survive.
So the smaller reservoirs like Rosehall stayed open and Irish Water, sorry they prefer to be known as Uisce Eireann these days, set about bringing them up to standard.
Frank is up in arms however because this improvement work has involved felling mature tress which lined the perimeter of the reservoir. Uisce Eireann says this was necessary because roots can damage the waterproof lining of the reservoir and a reservoir that leaks is not much use to anyone.
They did say that they would be planting hundreds of new trees but Frank is unimpressed.
“The Council is telling us to plant trees to improve the environment but Irish Water has cut them down at Rosehall which is a beautiful place where fishermen from Drogheda and across the North East have been fishing for many years.
“They were very upset when they discovered that the trees had been cut down. The residents if the area were also very unhappy but it was too late at that stage to do anything about it.
“Irish Water are fobbing people off and nobody can get in touch with them – it’s shameful” Frank said. “I don’t know whether there’s another agenda here such as extracting water for a new industry but nobody is saying what’s going on.”
He did say that with all the new housing developments happening in and around Drogheda water resources are vital and will be in increasing demand as more people come to live in the area and more industry opens.
“Whether or not the Council can keep the water flowing is another issue but I want the trees replaced because wildlife, bird life and everything else has been affected by the cutting of the trees.
“They also provided shade for the fish which is essential to them. But the trees are gone now and now all that can happen is that the place is made safe and secure and that the anglers, to whom it is a very special place, can continue. Hopefully they can continue fishing the lake even if it may have to be fenced off.”
