An Bord Pleanála has granted planning permission for a €40 million expansion to the Kerrygold butter processing facility in Mitchelstown, Co. Cork.
The decision by the planning authority confirms the decision of Cork County Council to grant permission for an expansion of the facility, which is owned by Kerrygold Butter Packing Ireland, which is in turn an Ornua operation.
The application by the dairy business was accompanied by an Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIAR) and Natura Impact Statement (NIS).
The appeal against planning permission was taken by Kevin T. Finn of Potter & Finn Chartered Consulting Engineers in Mitchelstown. Documents show that An Taisce – which is currently involved in a Supreme Court appeal against a proposed Glanbia cheese manufacturing facility in Belview, Co. Kilkenny – was an observer party in the Mitchelstown Kerrygold appeal.
Finn had argued that, when permission was originally granted by the county council, it failed to take account of the smell and effluent coming from the plant, as well as the road traffic that would be caused by the extension.
The appellant also argued that Cork County Council failed to take account of the continued use of lorry traffic, service traffic, maintenance traffic and employee traffic.
As well as those points, the appeal had also said that the proposed development would “promote further milk production and associated harmful effects on the environment and climate contrary to the objectives to reduce the harmful contribution to climate change from farming”.
This argument was made despite the fact that the Kerrygold facility does not receive any milk directly from farmers. The plant is supplied by Aurivo, Diarygold and Carbery.
The An Bord Pleanála inspector, Kevin Moore, argued that the environmental impact – including the impact of dairy production – of the adjacent facilities belonging to these three processors/co-ops were appropriately assessed during their own planning processes and, therefore, there was no need to give the question further consideration for the Kerrygold plant.
On the effluent question, the inspector’s report noted that the treatment of waste water in that area is not the responsibility of the Kerrygold plant; that it has a licence to discharge waste water; and it has been ascertained from parties responsible for the waste water management that they will be able to deal with a projected increase in waster water from the plant.