Eu Proceeding Against Illegal Irish Quarries

national | environment | press release

Friday June 02, 2006 16:43

by Tony Lowes - Friends of the Irish Environment

admin at friendsoftheirishenvironment dot net

BBC Countryfile to highlight limestone pavement importance

The European Commission has lodged proceedings against Ireland with the European Court of Justice for its failure to assess and control unauthorised quarrying and similar activities. The proceedings follow a Letter of Formal Notice and a Reasoned Opinion sent by the Commission to Ireland over the past three years.

The BBC’s Countryfile programme tomorrow is highlighting the importance of maintaining limestone pavement as a unique natural habitat. Speaking in an interview from the Burren on the programme, Friends of the Irish Environment’s Tony Lowes explained that ‘The European Commission has just entered a case against Ireland in the European Court of Justice for its failure to control quarrying. The developers are actually quarrying and then looking for permission and of course this is the wrong way, you're supposed to assess your impact before you start."

Commenting on the programme, FIE suggested that the scale of quarrying of limestone for garden centres which concerned the BBC paled into insignificance when compared with some of the unauthorised Irish quarries which even supplied EU funded road projects.

‘On the one hand, the Commission is concerned because operations commence or continue without an appropriate environmental impact assessment. On the other hand, they are concerned that enforcement proceedings are virtually ineffective.’

The Commission’s case now before the Court highlights the fact that under present procurement procedures local authorities and the National Roads Authority are openly purchasing quarried materials from quarries without planning permission.

‘This makes it difficult for an impartial observer to take seriously Ireland’s claim that it has an effective planning enforcement system.’

FIE said that the infringement proceedings demonstrated the need for a separate national planning enforcement authority.

Countryfile will be broadcast on BBC 1 on Sunday June 4 at 11.30 am.

Verification: Annabelle Rowe
Director, BBC Countryfile
Tel: 0121 567 6532

Tony Lowes
Director, Friends of the Irish Environment
027 73131 / 087 2176316

Website
Photo of the destruction of many acres of karst limestone without assessment or planning permission at Welby’s Quarry, Moycullen, Co. Galway that forms part of the Commission’s case:
http://www.friendsoftheirishenvironment.net/docs/moycul....html

Photographs of unauthorised quarries in Monahan and Westmeath, together with An Taisce’s request to COMHAR to investigate purchases for national roadworks from unauthorised quarries.
http://www.friendsoftheirishenvironment.net/main/downlo...id=29

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Comments (2 of 2)

quarries

by c murray - the unmanageables

Sat Jun 03, 2006 18:10

dotliath at gmail dot com

dear tony,

There was a recent story about a heritage group in cavan fighting a quarry proposal
at Ardkillmore mountain. Other than that I know that there have been strong campaigns up
Ballinasloe way re quarry/superdump issues.
Google the Red branch heritage group.
Also : The Strategic Infrastructure bill will pass thru the oireachtas
this week, this allows for the crony lobby to apply for what they can term
critical infrastructure planning. New legislations round the bill are suspect
I haven't the links but I put them up on the event guide and in the newswire.
new laws re locus standi and recognised heritage groups with twelve months inception
will erode your right to access judicial review.
The people at tara heritage Preservation Group have been holding workshops on the issue
of the Law and citizenship. Google THPG.

my contact is at the top here. I can provide you with numbers and adresses.

unauthorized quarries

by catherinecheoinin@eircom.net

Tue Jul 22, 2008 15:44

catherinecheoinin at eircom dot net

Carna, Co. Galway

095 32272

There appears to be no control of quarrying activities in Co. Galway by the county council and there have been problems with Larkin quarries, Costello and Welby quarries, Moycullen...concerning ownership and proper title. In Rusheenamanagh, Carna a commonage has been exploited illegally by an operator for the last 20 years. Galway county council registered the "quarry" in name of O Cualain Teo. in October 2005
without either advising the landowners involved or obtaining their written consent. The operator claimed that since he was in situ for a period of over 12 years he now extinguished the rights to turbary and commonage of anyone acquiring property in the area since 1991 and claimed squatters' rights over 34 acres of commonage. This was contested by a local landowner and at Clifden Circuit Court Judge Raymond Groarke ruled the operator was trespassing on commonage and gave him one year to vacate and remediate site.
There had been a communal quarry beside commonage since days of CDB and Board of Works took sand for public roads from that source up to 1963. However the quarry operator said he had exclusive use of the commonage and quarry since 1961...when he was a teenager. (He started as a blasting contractor and c. 1983 put machinery on commonage.) The quarry workings have been intensified to such an extent that there is hardly any commonage left. In spite of court ruling the county council has not suspended activity on commonage...drilling, blasing and excavation continue as per usual.

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Eu Proceeding Against Illegal Irish Quarries

Comments (2 of 2)