An Bord Pleanála refuses permission for three windfarms 

An Bord Pleanála has issued three refusals for contentious plans for wind farms for Co Donegal, Co Clare and Co Cork having a combined 33 wind turbines.

The projects refused planning permission include high profile plans by Wingleaf Ltd for seven turbines with a tip height of 585 feet overlooking the Gougane Barra beauty spot in west Cork.

One of the opponents of the scheme was Fáilte Ireland which requested that the application be refused planning permission.

The decision marks the end of a long running planning battle by locals going back to 2020 that included a High Court challenge contesting a 2022 appeals board grant decision overturning a decision by Cork County County Council to refuse a planning application.

The appeals board has refused planning permission after concluding that the proposal would seriously injure the visual amenity of the area.

Separately, concerns for the fate of the Golden Eagle have help put paid to plans for a giant 19 turbine windfarm near Glenties in Co Donegal.

In Co Donegal, Cloghercor Wind Farm Limited was seeking planning permission for a 19 turbine wind farm with tip heights ranging from 607 ft high to 656 ft high on a 5,431 hectare site.

The proposed wind-farm was to have an electrical output of 95-136.8 megawatts (MW).

There was universal opposition to the wind-farm amongst members of Donegal Co Council while the appeals board received 85 submissions with the vast bulk strongly objecting to the proposal.

Those to make submissions included the Golden Eagle Trust.

In its decision, the appeals board refused planning permission across three grounds including the impact on the Golden Eagle.

The appeals board pointed out that the site of the proposed development is located within an area of significant ornithological value, which is of national importance to the Golden Eagle.

The board ruled that the nature and scale the proposed development would result in a significant risk of disturbance and displacement for the Golden Eagle present at this location.

The appeals board concluded that the proposed development would, thus, “have significant adverse impacts at a national level on the ornithological importance of the area by way of disturbance and displacement of the Golden Eagle, a protected bird of international importance”.

The board added that there are five known breeding pairs of the bird at the location.

The appeals board said that the proposed development can be viewed from the Wild Atlantic Way, a key tourist asset for the county and is within a zone of visual influence of Glenveagh National Park.

It stated that the proposed development, by reason of its height, scale and siting below a ridge would be visually obtrusive and would interfere with the character of the landscape, with specific scenic amenity designations, which it is necessary to preserve.

In a separate refusal to a planned seven turbine wind-farm by Slieveacurry Ltd for a site 6.5km east of Milltown Malbay near Clare’s west coast, the appeals board cited concerns for the Marsh Fritillary butterfly and birds, the Golden Plover and the Hen Harrier.

The board noted the site to be an ecologically sensitive area of significant ornithological value and and value to the Annex II species, the Marsh Fritillary.

The board stated that in the absence of data monitoring the impacts, if any, of existing wind farm developments in this area, it cannot be satisfied that the cumulative environmental environmental assessment of the likely effects of the proposed development on avifauna can reasonably exclude the possibility of significant impact.