Bord na Mona has confirmed that it intends to seek planning permission for the development of a wind farm at Derryadd in Co. Longford within weeks.

Speaking to AgriLand, the semi-state body said it would lodge the planning application with the local authority when all the paperwork in respect of the matter was signed off on.

Niall Dennigan of the ‘No to Derryadd Wind Farm Group’ says people in south Longford are “very angry” with this latest outcome and also feel “let down by Bord na Mona”, which has been part of the community in Lanesboro for over 60 years.

“People feel very let down by the way in which Bord na Mona has conducted itself throughout the process,” said Mr. Dennigan.

People in south Longford are angered by the decision and feel let down by Bord na Mona.

“We always wanted to meet Bord na Mona halfway on this, but they just wouldn’t cooperate; they told us the referee in all of this would be An Bord Pleanala.”

Background

In preparation for the planing application, members of the ‘No to Derryadd Wind Farm Group’ held a cross party meeting in Dail Eireann before Christmas where they outlined their concerns to elected representatives over the development.

Mr. Dennigan said members met with a number of TDs and subsequently outlined the concerns of the entire community to them.

“We talked about the implications the wind farm would have on our area,” the group chairman added.

“We also talked about the benefits of the Shannon Wilderness Park and how Bord na Mona could sustain jobs through that.”

Meanwhile, the ‘No to Derryadd Wind Farm Group’ says it made numerous attempts to make contact with Bord na Mona.

“The company removed itself from all discussions with the local community 12 months ago after objections were made in relation to its wind farm proposals,” added Mr. Dennigan.

Bord na Mona is still not communicating with any of us in relation to the wind farm; it appears that it’s their way or the highway.

Bord na Mona, meanwhile, denies that it failed to communicate with the local community. In a statement to AgriLand, the company pointed to the fact that representatives attended a meeting in Lanesboro as recently as last month.

“We can confirm that some of Bord na Mona’s Powergen development team – John Reilly, head of Bord na Mona Powergen; Sean Creedon; and Pat Fitzgerald met with members of the Derryadd group on December 12, 2018 in the Co-Op Hall in Lanesboro.

“At the meeting the parties discussed a range of issues connected with the proposed wind farm,” the statement added.

Community implications

The wind farm group’s chairman says there are numerous implications including health and environmental.

“A lot of the health issues we have are the same as every other person in the country facing a wind farm development in their area,” Mr. Dennigan said.

“The concerns we have include noise, shadow-flicker and health concerns such as epilepsy.

There was a study done in Australia which indicates clearly that people are suffering from heart problems as a direct result of wind turbines; that is a very worrying development as well.

Mr. Dennigan went on to say that residents were also extremely concerned about flooding as a result of a development that will include the installation of 24 turbines.

“There are flooding issues already taking place downstream in Lanesboro and putting in that number of turbines will just add to this problem,” the Longford man concluded.