Meeting planned as concerns grow over Kildare solar farm plan
Image for illustration purposes
RESIDENTS living near the proposed BNRG Maganey solar farm are to hold a public meeting next week as concerns grow over the scale of the development and its potential impact on the local community.
The meeting will take place at 8pm on Monday 7 September in Levitstown Hall, and is being organised by members of the local community who want to encourage as many concerned residents as possible to attend.
The proposed solar farm, being developed by Irish renewable energy company BNRG, is planned across lands in the townlands of Beaconstown, Johnstown North and South, Kilkea Upper and Crooket.
An application for planning permission was submitted last week, according to local residents.
The project was previously advertised as having the potential to generate 105MW of solar power across a 114-hectare site. BNRG has said the development could power the equivalent of 14,000 homes and save an estimated 21,300 tonnes of carbon emissions annually.
However, residents living close to the proposed development say they have concerns about the impact of construction and the loss of agricultural land.
One local resident, Marian, who lives directly beside the proposed site told the : “I live on a laneway off this little very narrow road that the panels are going on. Honestly speaking, the road is not wide enough for a truck, let alone an artic.”
Marian said the road is believed to be approximately three metres wide and is used as a link between two local roads. She is particularly concerned about the potential disruption during construction, which residents expect could last for around two years.
“I’m worried about the two-year disruption,” she said. “The loss of good agricultural land and the noise and the disruption for the whole two years is going to be the biggest problem.”
Residents estimate that around 300 acres of agricultural land could be taken out of production across the Johnstown and Kilkea areas as part of the wider development.
Concerns have also been raised about the impact of construction traffic on local roads. Marian said residents fear the roadway could be damaged during construction and that the narrow road network could struggle to accommodate large vehicles such as articulated lorries.
Residents also say they feel there has been limited consultation with people living immediately beside the proposed development. Marian said that while leaflet drops had taken place, only two of the 14 homes directly beside one section of the site received information about the proposal.
The community meeting is intended to give residents an opportunity to share information about the project and to discuss how they can participate in the planning process.
“We’re just trying to get out the word that this is going ahead now and we need to get working on it now to stop it,” Marian said.
The group also hopes that the meeting will raise awareness of what it sees as a wider issue around the development of large-scale solar farms across the country.
“We want to let people know that these things are happening all over the country,” Marian said.
The upcoming community meeting will provide residents with an opportunity to discuss the planning application and the concerns they have about the proposed development.
Organisers are urging members of the local community who have concerns or want to find out more about the project to come along to the meeting next Monday.
