Decision due on plans for 185m high turbines in Ballivor
An Bord Pleanala is due to issue its ruling on 12th April on plans for the controversial Bracklyn Wind Farm which would see nine 185m turbines erected in the Coolronan, Ballivor and Delvin area if approved.
A planning application was lodged last October by Bracklyn Windfarm Ltd for a nine-turbine wind farm on lands at Coolronan and Ballivor in Meath and Ballagh, Billistown, Ballinacor, and Bracklyn, in Westmeath. Bracklyn Windfarm Ltd is a subsidiary of Galetech Energy Group. Twenty submissions were made to Bord Pleanala on the plans.
Over 150 people attended a public meeting in Ballivor on 4th March, organised by the Delvin Raharney Ballivor Wind Action Group to update the community.
The group is concerned not only by plans for the nine-turbine Bracklyn Wind farm but also Bord Na Móna's plans for 26 200m high wind turbines in the Ballivor Bog Group.
Bord na Móna has not yet submitted its application and the DBR Wind Action Group has called for it to postpone submitting its planning application for 26 wind turbines in the Ballivor Bog Group for at least six months to allow for a community consultation process unhindered by Covid restrictions.
Speaking following the meeting in Ballivor, the group's spokesperson Daryll Kennedy said that attendees voiced concerns about a range of issues surrounding Bord na Móna’s and Galetech’s plans to construct a combined total of 35 wind turbines in the locality, including the potential impact of the two projects on biodiversity, people’s health and wellbeing, and property prices. He said that many people living in the area were unsure about the scale of the two proposed developments.
In addition to calling for Bord na Móna to postpone its planning application for at least six months to allow for a community consultation process unhindered by Covid restrictions, the Delvin Raharney Ballivor group are also calling on the government to reconsider what the group sees as Ireland’s over reliance on wind energy when it comes to meeting its renewable energy targets.
“Each county or region of the country should be independent to decide what renewable energy mix is most appropriate for their respective areas,” Mr Kennedy said.