Council seek planning guidance in light of propose Kildare solar farms

The executive of Kildare County Council told a recent meeting that they will ask the government for a National Planning Statement covering large-scale solar farms, amid local discontent over a proposed project in the south Kildare area of Maganey.

The five councillors for the Athy Municipal District - cllrs Mark Leigh, Aoife Breslin, Brian Dooley, Vera Louise Behan & Ivan Keatley – brought a motion to September’s full council meeting, proposing that the local authority ‘requests that the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage urgently publish clear national planning guidelines for large-scale solar farm developments’.

They want the guidelines to address issues ‘including cumulative impact, landscape, biodiversity, agricultural land, water quality, residential amenity and decommissioning’.

There are currently no specific national planning guidelines in place for solar energy developments. Minister James Browne said in September that his department is working with the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment on the national planning statement, with the two departments working to identify relevant factors including environmental reporting, public consultation, the Renewable Energy Directive (RED III), battery storage and a possible publication timeframe.

The councillor’s motion came in the context of local opposition to BNRG Solar’s proposed 114-hectare (281-acre) project in Maganey. BNRG’s application, which is currently being considered by the local authority, would span the rural townlands of Beaconstown, Johnstown North and South, Kilkea Upper and Crooket, near Kildare’s borders with Carlow and Laois.

Director of services Alan Dunney issued the council’s written response to the councillors, telling them that the council executive will contact the Minister’s Department to request a National Planning Statement. The response also outlined that there is no legislation that allows the council to postpone determining existing planning applications while awaiting national guidelines, and so they will continue to be assessed individually.

Councillors Noel Connolly and Rob Power – both from outside the municipal district – spoke to voice their support for the motion, while Mr Dunney said that he agreed with the sentiment of the motion. It was agreed that a letter would be written to the Department.

A week before September’s full council meeting, Fianna Fáil councillor Behan brought forward a motion at the Athy Municipal District meeting, proposing that ‘the council considers only industrial sites’ in the municipal district as locations for ‘commercially generated solar energy’.

The council executive rejected the proposal, while Fine Gael councillor Ivan Keatley said it was “too sweeping and broad”.

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme