Kentstown locals protest against power plant plans

Kentstown came out in force earlier today protesting plans to build a power plant in their village.

The Stop Kentstown Power Plant Group organised a protest march that started at 3pm today at Kentstown Village Park which travelled through the village to Kentstown National School. Approximately a hundred people attended the march to voice concerns regarding the proposed plans for a gas power plant.

“What we are trying to get out today is obviously awareness that locally this is going to happen; it is going to be visible from the national school,” said Stop Kentstown Power Plant group member, Aled Ingman.

“It is just in the wrong place. This area is prime agricultural land. There is other alternatives that even Meath County Council have questioned if the developer looked at alternatives not just in Meath, but across the nation.”

Polarisgate Ltd is currently seeking a 10-year planning permission for the development consisting of three open cycle gas turbine generators each with a 30m high stack on a 19-acre site at Curraghtown, Brownstown. The plant, if approved, would have a 40-year operation period and would provide back-up electricity to the national grid.

“It is a huge frustration on a community when you see a huge, massive, dirty industrial proposal going like this going into the council,” said TD Darren O’Rourke speaking at the protest.

“I think it is really important that the community sticks together, that gets a large number of submissions in at every stage, but more importantly that they are of a high quality and that they look at the details of the submission and I think that is something the community has done so far and hopefully will continue to do.”

More on this in Tuesday's paper