West Limerick 102
Encyclopedia
West Limerick 102 is a community radio
station broadcasting to the western parts of County Limerick
in Ireland. The station operates on a non-commercial basis and has a five year license issued by the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland. The station went on air in May, 2005 and was officially opened by then Taoiseach
Bertie Ahern
in April 2006.
The station has studios in Newcastle West
, Abbeyfeale
and Rathkeale
.
The schedule features a mixture of programmes covering local news and current affairs, as well as music shows appealing to diverse musical tastes, including country, rock and Irish traditional music.
West Limerick 102 is a member of CRAOL
, the Community Radio Forum of Ireland.
The level of interest in having a dedicated station for the region had been tested in 2003/'04 by an unlicenced radio operation called NCW 103 (later known as NCW 106 following a move in frequency). In sharp contrast to many pirate radio operations that had previously operated in the Limerick region, the primary focus of NCW was to measure the feasibility of such a station and, having determined that the interest did indeed exist, the operators of NCW voluntarily shut down the operation and applied to the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) for a licence to serve the area.
The initial offering from the BCI was a 30-day temporary licence, and following a significant expansion of the team of volunteers and presenters, the station went on air as "West Limerick Community Radio" for the month of June 2004. Broadcasting solely on 102.2FM, the initial pilot covered a range of about 5 miles from studios in the square in Newcastle West.
Following the relative success of the pilot, an application was made to the BCI for a full-time operation, which was subsequently granted, allowing the current station to arrive on-air in May 2005, with an expanded coverage which reaches Limerick City and South Clare, as well as additional dedicated studio facilities in Abbeyfeale and Rathkeale.
Community radio
Community radio is a type of radio service, that offers a third model of radio broadcasting beyond commercial broadcasting and public broadcasting. Community stations can serve geographic communities and communities of interest...
station broadcasting to the western parts of County Limerick
County Limerick
It is thought that humans had established themselves in the Lough Gur area of the county as early as 3000 BC, while megalithic remains found at Duntryleague date back further to 3500 BC...
in Ireland. The station operates on a non-commercial basis and has a five year license issued by the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland. The station went on air in May, 2005 and was officially opened by then Taoiseach
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas , and must, in order to remain in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil.The current Taoiseach is...
Bertie Ahern
Bertie Ahern
Patrick Bartholomew "Bertie" Ahern is a former Irish politician who served as Taoiseach of Ireland from 26 June 1997 to 7 May 2008....
in April 2006.
The station has studios in Newcastle West
Newcastle West
Newcastle West is a town in west County Limerick, Ireland. The town is the largest town in the county, excluding Limerick city, and is sited on the River Arra which flows into the River Deel...
, Abbeyfeale
Abbeyfeale
Abbeyfeale is a historical market town in County Limerick, Ireland near the boundary with County Kerry. The town is in the midwest of Ireland, some from Newcastle West on the N21 – the main road from Limerick to Tralee.-Geography:...
and Rathkeale
Rathkeale
Rathkeale is a town in west County Limerick, Ireland. It is located 30 km southwest of Limerick city on the N21 road to Tralee, and lies on the River Deel. Rathkeale has a significant Irish Traveller population....
.
The schedule features a mixture of programmes covering local news and current affairs, as well as music shows appealing to diverse musical tastes, including country, rock and Irish traditional music.
West Limerick 102 is a member of CRAOL
CRAOL
CRAOL, also called the Community Radio Forum of Ireland, is the representative, co-ordinating, lobbying, training and support group for Irish Community Radio. Every week, across Ireland, 2000 Community radio volunteers broadcasts to 170,000 people in 20 fully licensed stations and 42 aspirant...
, the Community Radio Forum of Ireland.
Broadcasting Frequencies
- 102.2 MHz covering the Newcastle West / Rathkeale area
- 101.6 MHz covering the Shannon Estuary area
- 101.4 MHz covering the Abbeyfeale area
- And online at http://www.westlimerick102.ie
History and background
West Limerick 102 is the first ever radio licence issued specifically for West Limerick.The level of interest in having a dedicated station for the region had been tested in 2003/'04 by an unlicenced radio operation called NCW 103 (later known as NCW 106 following a move in frequency). In sharp contrast to many pirate radio operations that had previously operated in the Limerick region, the primary focus of NCW was to measure the feasibility of such a station and, having determined that the interest did indeed exist, the operators of NCW voluntarily shut down the operation and applied to the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) for a licence to serve the area.
The initial offering from the BCI was a 30-day temporary licence, and following a significant expansion of the team of volunteers and presenters, the station went on air as "West Limerick Community Radio" for the month of June 2004. Broadcasting solely on 102.2FM, the initial pilot covered a range of about 5 miles from studios in the square in Newcastle West.
Following the relative success of the pilot, an application was made to the BCI for a full-time operation, which was subsequently granted, allowing the current station to arrive on-air in May 2005, with an expanded coverage which reaches Limerick City and South Clare, as well as additional dedicated studio facilities in Abbeyfeale and Rathkeale.