#CoastalNotes - The Canadian coastguard hat found washed up on a Co Waterford beach before Christmas may have been traced to Newfoundland, according to CBC News.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, Tramore man Craig Butler found the barnacle-encrusted hat while returning from surfing at a local beach on Christmas Eve.

Upon searching the internet for the Latin inscription on the hat, he discovered that it belonged to the Canadian Coast Guard – which has now confirmed that it would be been worn by an officer of its environmental response unit.

It also said that accounting for prevailing winds and currents, the hat most likely entered the water in the Canadian Coast Guard's Atlantic Region, which encompassed the Maritimes and Newfoundland.

CBC News has more on the story HERE.

#CoastalNotes - Just weeks after a US Coast Guard life ring was found on the Clare coast comes news that a hard had belonging to the Canadian Coast Guard washed up in Tramore on the South Coast.

As CBC News reports, the barnacle-encrusted hat was discovered on Christmas Eve in the Co Waterford coastal town by local man Craig Butler, who left it on a sea wall due to its noxious odour.

But the surfer later searched online or the Latin inscription on the hat, 'Saluti Primum Auxilio Semper' – the motto of the Canadian Coast Guard, which translates as 'Safety First, Service Always'.

It's not yet known how old the hat is or how it might have ended up in the sea, nor whether it travelled as far as the 6,000km the life ring found in Kilkee some weeks ago had drifted from Florida more than two years ago, as previously reported on Afloat.ie.

CBC News has more on the story HERE.

#StormFrank - South to southeast gales have been forecast for all coasts on the Irish Sea today as Storm Frank advances from the Atlantic.

Met Éireann's Status Yellow marine warning, issued early this morning (Monday 28 December), advises that southwest winds veering northwest will reach gale force or a short time later today on all coasts from Mizen Head to Erris Head to Malin Head ahead of the sixth winter storm of the season.

Last night winds were predicted to gust as high as 95kmh in western coastal counties, while 30mm of rain could fall in Galway, Mayo, Clare, Cork, Kerry and Limerick – many of these areas still suffering from floods caused by Storm Desmond earlier this month.

As TheJournal.ie reports, Storm Frank is also expected to produce "exceptionally high Atlantic waves" on the North, West and South Coasts, which will be good news for Ireland's intrepid big wave surfers.

#LifeRing - A life ring belonging to the US Coast Guard was found more than 6,000km from home on the Clare coast recently.

As BreakingNews.ie reports, the ring was spotted from the air by the crew of the Shannon-based Irish Coast Guard helicopter Rescue 115 near Byrnes Cove in Kilkee during another search in the area some weeks ago.

Poor weather prevented coastguard teams from retrieving the water safety apparatus and its attached strobe light for several days.

But upon taking it in, they learned that the ring had drifted all the way across the Atlantic after it was lost overboard from a US Coast Guard vessel in Port Canaveral in Florida more than two years ago.

BreakingNews.ie has more on the story HERE.

#Burren - The unique landscape of the Burren and the Cliffs of Moher on Ireland's Wild Atlantic Way is the subject of a new book by one of Ireland's leading photographers.

This Is The Burren, Carsten Krieger's photographic ode to the world-famous region, will be launched by Rose Hynes, a native of North Clare and chairperson of Shannon Group plc, in Hyland's Burren Hotel in Lisdoonvarna, Co Clare, this Sunday 29 November.

The Burren and the Cliffs of Moher – which, along with Waterford's Copper Coast, was last week designated with UNESCO Global Geopark status, as the Irish Examiner reports – is among Ireland’s most enigmatic and magical landscapes.

The 176 photographs featured in This Is The Burren – some of which are featured on Krieger's website HERE – capture the essence of the Burren, including its weathered karst landscape, the ever-changing light; the exotic flora; the elusive wildlife; the tombs, cairns, forts and churches; and the people who call the Burren their home.

Carsten Krieger, who was born in Germany, visited the Burren after learning it was the inspiration for JRR Tolkien’s Middle Earth. More visits followed before he and his wife finally decided to move to Co Clare to be close to the unique landscape.

After publishing his first book, Carsten moved on to other projects, but said: "The Burren always stayed close to my heart and in all the books I have made over the past decade the Burren pops up in each of them in one way or another."

Carsten returned to the Burren to take more photographs in 2011, a project that turned into his latest book.

"Although four years sounds like a long time I could easily have spent another couple of years exploring and photographing the Burren, and most likely will do so. Every trip brings something used and unexpected and a reason to return another time," he said.

Cllr James Breen, Cathaoirleach of Clare County Council, described the book as "a valuable photographic record of one of the jewels in the Irish tourism crown."

He added: "Carsten's photographs illustrate perfectly how remarkable the landscape of the Burren really is and why the work of organisations such as the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Geopark in heritage management and sustainable development throughout the region is critical.

"The book also is a tribute to how man and nature are deeply entwined in the Burren and have shaped each other over the millennia."

Carol Gleeson, project manager for the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark, said her and her team were "delighted to have been able to support Carsten and the publication of this book which demonstrates the enormous wealth of history and geological significance associated with the Burren and Cliffs of Moher."

She continued: "Since 2006, Clare County Council has been working in the Burren to develop a truly sustainable tourism destination that gives direct benefits to the local community, promotes and celebrates local culture and produce, preserves the environment and provides a great experience for our visitors.

"Carsten's photographs gives credence to this amazing landscape and the wide range of fantastic work that is ongoing throughout the Burren through sustainable practices."

Carsten Krieger's This Is The Burren, which is introduced by local author and broadcaster PJ Curtis, is published by The Collins Press and is available in all good bookstores and online at www.collinspress.ie.

#Submarine - RAF aircraft have been joined by French and Canadian counterparts as well as a Royal Navy frigate in the search for a Russian submarine reported to have been seen off the Scottish coast.

According to The Scotsman, it's believed the search has been ongoing for more than a week after a vessel was detected north of Scotland, though the UK's Ministry of Defence would neither confirm nor deny such a search was taking place.

The news comes some three months after a Donegal crab boat reported a near-miss with a submarine off Tory Island on Ireland's North Coast.

It's not known what country's military that submarine represented, but it is feared that Russian subs might be secretly surveying undersea internet cables for potential strategic advantage.

However, searches for such rogue submarines have been blamed by environmentalists for prompting significant whale strandings, as reported on Afloat.ie earlier this year.

The Scotsman has more on the story HERE.

#CoastalNotes - Unauthorised sea defences on Lough Foyle have landed two men with suspended prison sentences, as the News Letter reports.

David McCullough of Ballymena and Gregory Allen of Limavady were found to have built sea defences using 20,000 waste tyres at a site in Bellarena, south of Magilliagn Point on the east coast of the lough, without a licence from the Northern Ireland Environment Agency.

District judge Liam McNally said the offence was "very serious" as he handed down four-month sentences suspended for two years at Limavady Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday 18 November.

The News Letter has more on the story HERE.

#StarWars - Star Wars may be returning to Kerry for more filming in the New Year – this time on the mainland.

According to RTÉ News, producers with Disney Lucasfilm have signed contracts with landowners at Ceann Sibéal on the Dingle Peninsula after surveying the area's "dramatic cliffs" during the recent filming on Skellig Michael.

It's understood that film crews will return to Kerry in April but not before an environmental impact assessment on the coastal site, an EU-designated Special Protection Area with important colonies of birds including the peregrine falcon.

The Skellig Michael shoot in September passed with "no adverse impact on seabirds" at the Unesco World Heritage Site despite 'minor' incidents that required repairs to the centuries-old stonework.

RTÉ News has more on the story HERE.

#Coastwatch - There's still a week left for Coastwatch volunteers to participate in the annual Coastwatch Survey for 2015, which this year has a special focus on the new Dublin Bay Biosphere.

Since 15 September volunteers have taken on one or more 'survey units' – 500m of shore – to do an 'eco-audit' of Ireland's shoreline at low tide. Details are available HERE.

It's hoped that the survey will break the 1,000-unit barrier by the last day next Thursday 15 October – while also encouraging the public to experience the particularly low spring tides at this time of year, revealing much more of our vibrant marine biodiversity.

Such discoveries could even be record-breaking, like the massive honeycomb reef found by Coastwatch volunteers in the Waterford Estuary this past summer.

#RushbrookeScrap - The High Court has dismissed a challenge to An Bord Pleanála’s grant of permission for construction of a scrap metal processing facility at the former ship-building yard in Cobh, Co Cork.

Mr Justice Seamus Noonan rejected the challenge by local residents aimed at overturning the March 2013 permission for a scrap metal processing facility, waste storage facility and quayside storage at Cork Dockyard, Rushbrooke Commercial Park, Cobh.

There was nothing unreasonable or irrational about the board’s decision, he said.

After Cobh Town Council refused to grant permission for the project, that decision was appealed to An Bord Pleanála.

To read much more The Irish Times has a report here.