Friday 27 November 2009

Clare wind farm ‘could damage peatland’

The Irish Peatland Conservation Council (IPCC) has claimed that a €12 million wind farm in northeast Clare could damage the landscape if the proper stress tests are not conducted.

Last month, Clare County Council gave SWS Energy Ltd planning permission to construct an eight-turbine wind farm to the south of the Maghera mountain range near the village of Tulla.

In its appeal to An Bord Pleanála the conservation body said: “If the proper stress tests specific to peat soils are not conducted . . . construction could lead to a bog burst. With the aim of protecting the rare . . . blanket bog habitat and the birds of international concern, the above proposed development should not be permitted to go ahead.” A decision from An Bord Pleanála is not expected until March.

Irish Times

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