Sir, – Paddy Murray (An Irishman's Diary, September 14th) rightly extols the historic and visual importance of the Poolbeg power station chimneys in Dublin Port. The elder chimney celebrated its 50th birthday last year, and both chimneys are now looking shabby and unloved, and are badly indeed of fresh coats of red and white paint. He says that what came out the top was not smoke but steam. That was true after the power station converted to natural gas, but prior to that the chimneys belched the blackest of oil smoke. They made for wonderful visual weather vanes, but we coastal dwellers were always glad when the prevailing wind was from the west. – Yours, etc,
RODNEY DEVITT,
Sandymount,
Dublin 4.