| Wind Watch is a registered educational charity, founded in 2005. |
Laois County Council gives green light for wind farm connection
Credit: By Joe Barrett | Laois Nationalist | December 1, 2016 | www.laois-nationalist.ie ~~
Translate: FROM English | TO English
Translate: FROM English | TO English
Laois County Council has given Coillte the go ahead for a controversial wind farm grid connection from their proposed Cullenagh wind farm to the ESB sub-station on the Abbeyleix Road in Portlaoise.
Despite a large volume of objections to the application, the county planners gave their permission with 12 conditions attached.
This now opens the door for Coillte to erect 18 wind turbines on more than 1,468 acres of lands between Ballyroan and Timahoe and to proceed with cabling from there to the ESB sub-station on the Abbeyleix Road in Portlaoise.
There were 31 submissions to the planning application. Just one, Inland Fisheries Ireland, said it had no objection to the grid connection provided eight of its conditions were met.
Many objectors to the grid connection stated that the proposed route of the cable runs over their lands and that they have not granted Coillte right of way over their lands.
One woman’s objection was based on the proximity of the 38kV electrical line that would run to Ballyroan girls school.
She wrote: “I note that while there remains uncertainty regarding the link between electric and magnetic fields and childhood leukaemia, the Advanced Research on Interaction Risk Assessment have stated that ‘the relationship between extremely low frequency magnetic fields and childhood leukaemia remains consistent with possible carcinogenicity in humans. In the case of any uncertainty regarding health of young children close to high voltage lines, it is imperative that Cóillte uses alternative options.”
Other objections pointed out that Coillte had proceeded with the grid work ahead of approval been given by the council and, as such, their planning application should be deemed invalid and that an application for planning retention should have been submitted.
The Ballyroan-based opponents of the Cullenagh wind project Farm People Over Wind as well as The Swan, Luggacurren, Wolfhill, Stradbally Wind Group made submissions to the application, which were accompanied by signed petitions objecting to the plans.
This article is the work of the source indicated. Any opinions expressed in it are not necessarily those of National Wind Watch.
The copyright of this article resides with the author or publisher indicated. As part of its noncommercial educational effort to present the environmental, social, scientific, and economic issues of large-scale wind power development to a global audience seeking such information, National Wind Watch endeavors to observe “fair use” as provided for in section 107 of U.S. Copyright Law and similar “fair dealing” provisions of the copyright laws of other nations. Send requests to excerpt, general inquiries, and comments via e-mail.
| Wind Watch relies entirely on User Funding |
 (via Stripe) |
 (via Paypal) |
Share:
[ Short URL: https://wind-watch.org/news/?p=80525 ]
