Kildare quarry set to triple in size

A PLAN to triple the size of an existing quarry in south Kildare has been accepted by the county council last week.

The Ballyburn Pit in the townland of Gorteenvacan, about halfway between Castledermot and Carlow town, has seen the 9.5Ha (23.5 acre) site operated by Dan Morrissey Quarries (t/a Plazamont Ltd) since 2006. Then, in December 2024, the company applied to expand the quarry by 28.3Ha (70 acres) into the agricultural land to the south of the present quarry, extending it all to a total area of 37.8Ha (93.4 acres) for an operational lifespan of 15 years.

The plan called for the extraction of three million tonnes of sand and gravel from the site, lowering the floor of the pit to 71m OD (‘ordnance datum’ or mean sea level), but above the winter water table. The proposal did not seek any expansion for infrastructure, as it plans to continue using the same entrance, offices, weigh bridge, processing plant machinery and car park.

As is the case with all applications for a newly-opened quarry pit, it must also come with a plan for reinstatement, and so it is with this, which includes a blueprint to return ‘1.125m tonnes of uncontaminated soil and stone by-product’ to the finished pit in 2041.

The proposal came with a number of local complaints in the same categories – water quality, air pollution, extra traffic, noise and buffer zones – but objectors didn’t formalise their grievances when given the opportunity.

The planners issued a preliminary report in February 2025 that sought a total of 36 documents of further information from the Morrissey’s, including a 175-page environmental impact assessment report and a natura impact statement (NIS) to include an otter survey on the Palatine stream, as well as information on local bird, badger and bat numbers.

The planners asked Morrissey’s to revise their extraction estimate down to 2.66m tonnes and their reinstatement requirements to 975,200 tonnes, and the company agreed.

In the environmental impact report, it stated: ‘The proposed development is considered to have relatively modest physical impact’ on the location, and the planners agreed.

Once the buffer zones between the pit and local residents was extended, the planners stated: ‘The principle of an extension to the existing quarry is acceptable’ and the application was granted permission on 13 January.