Ireland is in breach of European directives in relation to the effects of environmental projects, the advocate general of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has said.
The decision follows a complaint to the European Commission about a proposed €100 million development of the Curragh racecourse in Co Kildare.
The redevelopment was finally approved by An Bord Pleanála a year ago, more than two years after the Irish Turf Club first sought planning permission. Kildare County Council originally granted permission for the development in October 2006, but local farmer Percy Podger appealed to An Bord Pleanála on behalf of Friends of the Curragh Environment.
Podger claimed that the planning application was invalid and the environmental impact statement was inadequate. He also complained to the European Commission about breaches of EU directives.
The commission brought an action against the government in September 2007 for failing to transpose parts of several directives into Irish law, and for not informing the commission about subsequent changes to the law. Ireland said the court should dismiss the action. However, ECJ advocate general Juliane Kokott, in her opinion delivered last Thursday, said Ireland had failed to ensure adequately that road construction projects likely to have significant effects on the environment were subject to development consent and an assessment about their effects before consent was given.
She also said that Ireland had failed to ensure public participation in drawing up programmes relating to the environment.
It had also not made practical information on administrative and judicial review procedures available to the public, and had failed to inform the commission of High Court judgments concerning the Friends of the Curragh Environment, she said.
The commission also said that legal costs could be very high in Ireland, running into hundreds of thousands of euro.
The Irish government said that legal aid was available and potential applicants could also use the Ombudsman’s free complaints procedure, but Kokott said these arguments were ‘‘hardly compelling’’, as the legal aid scheme did not apply to procedures covered by the directive and the Ombudsman could not make binding decisions.
She said access to justice under Irish planning law was the focal point of the action, and anyone exercising their rights to bring court proceedings should ‘‘not be penalised, persecuted or harassed in any way for their involvement’’.
Member states had to provide practical information about access to justice; just publishing legislation was not sufficient. Kokott ordered that Ireland and the commission should each meet their own costs. Her opinion will now be considered by the court, which will give its ruling shortly.
Sunday Business Post
www.buckplanning.ie
Showing posts with label environmental planning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label environmental planning. Show all posts
Sunday, 18 January 2009
Sunday, 22 June 2008
Cowen picks economist as key policy adviser
TAOISEACH BRIAN Cowen has appointed a high-profile environmental economist with a strong track record in environmental issues, and an outspoken critic of decentralisation, as his special policy adviser.
The appointment of Dr Peter Clinch (37), the Jean Monnet Professor of European Environmental Policy at UCD since 2003, signals a shift of policy direction by the new Taoiseach compared to his predecessor Bertie Ahern. One source said that the arrival of a non-orthodox economist will result in "new thinking" in Government policymaking.
It is expected that Dr Clinch's main task will be to advise policy initiatives that will help the Government meet climate change targets while maintaining a secure economy.
Dr Clinch told The Irish Times last night that one of the Government's biggest challenges will be meeting the Kyoto Protocol commitments and the EU's target of a 20 per cent cut in the State's greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.
He added that he was impressed by Mr Cowen's commitments in this regard and his clear interest in these policy areas. He also said Mr Cowen was very committed to making decisions based on sound evidence and research.
"If you read the Taoiseach's acceptance speech, it concerns itself with the relationship between the economy and the environment . . . The market economy does not have to be the enemy of the environment," said Dr Clinch.
When the EU announced in January that Ireland would need to cut emissions by 20 per cent by 2020, the Government said it raised serious economic and social issues for the State. The targets are considered demanding and the challenge facing Mr Cowen is to find the appropriate balance of achieving them without causing damage to the economy.
Dr Clinch said he had little hesitation in taking up the position. "It was very clear that he wanted somebody who uses a strong technical basis for advice . . . It was not something that I could easily turn down."
Dr Clinch holds a second professorship in planning at UCD and is a former employee of the World Bank. He has been a consistent critic of the Government's decentralisation policy. In several articles, he has argued that it is flawed, will do little for regional balance, and could lead to reduced economic growth.
A strong advocate of evidence-based policymaking, he has been scathing in the past of what he has described as "back of the envelope opportunistic policymaking".
He has also written in favour of carbon taxes and against what he referred to as the "flimsy detail" contained in Transport 21. On the question of carbon taxes, he says there are misconceptions about the priorities of environmental economists. "An environmental economist is just as interested in the economy as in the environment," he argued.
"It's about finding the appropriate balance. I am just as likely to be critical of an environmentalist as I am of those who have no interest in the environment."
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
The appointment of Dr Peter Clinch (37), the Jean Monnet Professor of European Environmental Policy at UCD since 2003, signals a shift of policy direction by the new Taoiseach compared to his predecessor Bertie Ahern. One source said that the arrival of a non-orthodox economist will result in "new thinking" in Government policymaking.
It is expected that Dr Clinch's main task will be to advise policy initiatives that will help the Government meet climate change targets while maintaining a secure economy.
Dr Clinch told The Irish Times last night that one of the Government's biggest challenges will be meeting the Kyoto Protocol commitments and the EU's target of a 20 per cent cut in the State's greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.
He added that he was impressed by Mr Cowen's commitments in this regard and his clear interest in these policy areas. He also said Mr Cowen was very committed to making decisions based on sound evidence and research.
"If you read the Taoiseach's acceptance speech, it concerns itself with the relationship between the economy and the environment . . . The market economy does not have to be the enemy of the environment," said Dr Clinch.
When the EU announced in January that Ireland would need to cut emissions by 20 per cent by 2020, the Government said it raised serious economic and social issues for the State. The targets are considered demanding and the challenge facing Mr Cowen is to find the appropriate balance of achieving them without causing damage to the economy.
Dr Clinch said he had little hesitation in taking up the position. "It was very clear that he wanted somebody who uses a strong technical basis for advice . . . It was not something that I could easily turn down."
Dr Clinch holds a second professorship in planning at UCD and is a former employee of the World Bank. He has been a consistent critic of the Government's decentralisation policy. In several articles, he has argued that it is flawed, will do little for regional balance, and could lead to reduced economic growth.
A strong advocate of evidence-based policymaking, he has been scathing in the past of what he has described as "back of the envelope opportunistic policymaking".
He has also written in favour of carbon taxes and against what he referred to as the "flimsy detail" contained in Transport 21. On the question of carbon taxes, he says there are misconceptions about the priorities of environmental economists. "An environmental economist is just as interested in the economy as in the environment," he argued.
"It's about finding the appropriate balance. I am just as likely to be critical of an environmentalist as I am of those who have no interest in the environment."
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Tuesday, 4 September 2007
Green minister cuts renewable technologies incentive
THE Government is slashing grants to homeowners who use renewable technologies in their homes by as much as 50% — and it is a Green Party minister who is behind the incentive cuts.
The initial scheme was set up in April 2006 with a budget of €20 million.
It was supposed to last for five years. However, even though the budget was inflated to €47m, 16,000 grants have snapped up all the money and the Government is bringing it to an end.
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Eamon Ryan yesterday said the Greener Homes scheme had “fulfilled its initial objectives, surpassed its targets ahead of schedule and fully committed its budget allocation”.
However, he is introducing another scheme which cuts the incentive to avail of green technology.
According to the Government, the number of businesses creating renewable technologies has increased by 160% and the number of products they offer has grown tenfold.
Mr Ryan said he did not want to end the scheme but would have to “‘revise the terms and conditions to continue the good work”.
Householders would have received a grant of €4,200 for installing a biomass boiler, but will now receive just €3,000.
“I will be securing additional funding for this new phase via the supplementary estimates process when the Dáil resumes. The additional funding will also allow Sustainable Energy Ireland to fund similar energy grants for lower-income housing, school and community schemes and the roll-out of other innovative heating technologies,” he said.
His party colleague and fellow Government minister John Gormley would soon be introducing regulations requiring the use of renewable energy systems in new buildings, he said.
“This regulatory support for renewables is the logical next step in our support for the industry,” said Mr Ryan.
Irish Examiner
The initial scheme was set up in April 2006 with a budget of €20 million.
It was supposed to last for five years. However, even though the budget was inflated to €47m, 16,000 grants have snapped up all the money and the Government is bringing it to an end.
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Eamon Ryan yesterday said the Greener Homes scheme had “fulfilled its initial objectives, surpassed its targets ahead of schedule and fully committed its budget allocation”.
However, he is introducing another scheme which cuts the incentive to avail of green technology.
According to the Government, the number of businesses creating renewable technologies has increased by 160% and the number of products they offer has grown tenfold.
Mr Ryan said he did not want to end the scheme but would have to “‘revise the terms and conditions to continue the good work”.
Householders would have received a grant of €4,200 for installing a biomass boiler, but will now receive just €3,000.
“I will be securing additional funding for this new phase via the supplementary estimates process when the Dáil resumes. The additional funding will also allow Sustainable Energy Ireland to fund similar energy grants for lower-income housing, school and community schemes and the roll-out of other innovative heating technologies,” he said.
His party colleague and fellow Government minister John Gormley would soon be introducing regulations requiring the use of renewable energy systems in new buildings, he said.
“This regulatory support for renewables is the logical next step in our support for the industry,” said Mr Ryan.
Irish Examiner
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