An Taisce welcomes the decision by An Bord Pleanala to refuse permission for a major 12.58 hectares (nearly 32 acres) extension to its existing quarry adjacent to the village of Blessington and Glen Ding Wood and Hill.

The decision was refused on a wide range of grounds including:

• Adverse impact on amenity of Blessington Village
• Adverse impact on “amenity woodlands of Deerpark and Glen Ding”
• Failure to demonstrate that the proposal “taken in conjunction with the existing visual degradation of the adjoining lands would not further erode the character of this sensitive landscape, would not seriously interfere with the setting of Rath Turtle Moat (an important national monument), and would not constitute a visually obtrusive development in close proximity to the expanding village of Blessington.”
• Deficiency of Environmental Impact Statement on a range of issues:

• likely impact of the proposed development on groundwater
• Assessment of water quality in the vicinity
• Failure to “address the unauthorised landfilling that has occurred at the quarry of which the site would form a part”
• Failure to provide “appropriate controlled restoration of the extension area”

• Deficiency of information on habitats

An Taisce was the only body to appeal the original Wicklow County Council decision to grant permission for the quarry extension to An Bord Pleanala. During the course of the appeal, Dublin City Council raised concern on the impact on the Dublin drinking water supply at Blessington Reservoir. The comprehensive nature of the refusal including the grounds of failure to address the issues of ground water and drinking water quality, unauthorised dumping and amenity, visual, archaeological and natural heritage impact is a major indictment of the credibility and competence of Wicklow County Council as a planning authority.

The decision also vindicates the role of An Taisce as a “Prescribed Body” in monitoring planning applications in the public interest and raises the question as to why appeals were not taken directly by:

1. Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government on grounds of impact on the adjacent national monument as well as natural heritage;
2. The Eastern Health Board and Dublin City Council with regard to the protection of water quality and the unauthorised dumping;

A spokesperson for An Taisce stated that:

 “This decision marks an important turning point. For years, Roadstone has been allowed to develop and acquire additional lands for quarrying around Blessington and Glen Ding, leaving a massive legacy of illegal dumping, threats to drinking water quality and an open cast mining type landscape. An objection by Roadstone against the proposed decision by the EPA to allow retention of unauthorised landfilling remains undecided.”

“The failure of the Department of Environment to exercise their prescribed role to protect an important national monument follows their failure to protect the setting of Trim Castle.”

As a result of this appeal, An Taisce is seeking;

1.                  New procedures to ensure that Wicklow County Council and other local authorities do not grant planning permissions in breach of the EIA Directive;

2.                  Effective and concerted action by  DoEHLG, Wicklow County Council, Health Services Executive and Dublin City Council to protect the Blessington area from further damaging quarrying and landfill proposals

3.                  Effective action to comply with EU Directives and court judgements on remediation of the contaminated land incorporating the Roadstone quarry.