What it Says in the Castlebar and Mayo Papers

May 23rd, 2001

Connaught Telegraph

The Mayo News

The Western People

Quarry Company blast Council. The Connaught Telegraph this week.

Roadstone Provinces Limited is at loggerheads with Mayo County Council over the development of an extensive rock quarry at Islandeady, five miles from Castlebar. The council gave the go-ahead for the project on a site at Ballynamorroge, but the company is unhappy with a number of conditions attached to the planning permission. So much so that Mr. Sean Keane, development manager of Roadstone Provinces Limited, has taken the step of appealing to An Bord Pleanala against seven conditions. Mr. Keane said his firm had been asked to make a payment of £50,000 as a contribution towards the provision by the council of a turning lane on the N5 to facilitate access to the quarry, consisting of 63.1 hectares, at Cloonkeen. "While we are willing to contribute to such work, the sum of £50,000 is considered excessive as the required works are relatively minor." In his submission to the planning appeals board, Mr. Keane said that the conditions relating to site operations and blasting were 'restrictive' and 'did not provide the developer with an equal opportunity to compete in the market place.' Mr Keane stated that restricting blasting to between the hours of 11.00a.m and 5.00p.m was unreasonable as Roadstone did not have control over the delivery of explosives to the site.

Fisheries Board opposing £44m. hotel projects.The Connaught Telegraph this week.

An objection has been lodged to a £40million business park, hotel and housing development proceeding in Castlebar. Mayo County Council granted planning permission to Saleen Developments Limited, a company headed by Claremorris brothers Paul, James and Barry Dixon, for the substantial project on an 88-acre site adjacent to Saleen Lake off the Ballinrobe Road in the town. Now the North Western Regional Fisheries Board, which is involved in a concerted campaign of planning objections in the county town, wants to stop the development, which includes a 108-bedroom hotel with integrated function area, bar and dining facilities and leisure centre with an 18m pool, on the grounds that the town's sewerage treatment plant is currently over-loaded. Mr. Vincent Roche, the board's chief executive officer said problems with the plant were having a detrimental effect on the water quality and fisheries resources of the Castlebar River and Lough Cullin. "The board believes that further major development in Castlebar should not be allowed until adequate sewerage treatment facilities are provided."

Illegally built homes are part of the legacy of Guinness trial man, Lucas. The Connaught Telegraph this week.

Four unauthorised houses near Turlough, Castlebar were part of the estate of Guinness trial man Tom Lucas who passed away earlier this month. The question of whether the partly constructed homes, which went ahead without planning permission, will have to be demolished, will be decided by the courts later this year. Mr Lucas, who was in his eighties when he died, came to live at Ballynew, Castlebar about fifteen years ago. He escaped having to travel in London in connection with the Guinness share fraud trial. He had been charged with trying to cheat jailed businessman Gerald Ronson out of £30 million by claiming he could nobble the jury in the trial. The case against him was dropped on compassionate grounds after a court in London was told that he was a very severe diabetic and had retired to Ireland with his wife. Last year, Mr. Lucas found himself in trouble here when unauthorised developments close to his "Broadfield Stables" at Turlough were halted on the instructions of Circuit Court Judge Harvey Kenny.

Fish farm to develop more sites in Clew Bay. The Mayo News this week.

FEIRM Farraige Oilean Chliara Teo, Clare Island Seafarms, Coughmore Achill, are planning to develop two more sheltered sites within Clew Bay to allow more economic year-round production. If the project is approved it will result in an increase in annual production from 3,166 tonnes to 5,662 tonnes of farmed salmon. The two proposed sites were chosen after a number of alternative sites were discussed with other users of the bay. The Aquatic Services Unit, Department of Zoology, Cork has been commissioned to prepare an environmental impact statement on the proposed development. The 'Mayo News' has also been contacted with expressions of concern about the potential impact of the proposed development on tourism, especially in a bay that is an important component of the local tourism product. Visual impact is a matter of some concern as are impacts on other activities, including local fisheries, sailing, bathing and flora and fauna.

Delight in Clifden as airstrip is approved. The Mayo News.

Several years after the idea was first mooted An Bord Pleanala has approved the building of an airstrip near Clifden, the Connemara capital. Previous attempts to get permission for such a development had been rejected because sites chosen were in areas of high environmental value. The project has been a source of controversy between environmentalists and local tourism operators for many years. The site for the airstrip is in the Cloon/Laghtanabba townlands, a few miles north of Clifden. An Bord Pleanala noted that while it was adjacent but outside a Special Area of Conversation, it "would not cause undue damage to the ecology of visual amenities of the area or diminish its heritage value." While permission has been granted for the airstrip in line with Government policy to promote links with the offshore islands of Inishbofin, Inishturk and Clare Island, plans for a terminal building and car parking were rejected.

TV deflector group welcome extension of licensing period.The Mayo News this week.

TV Deflector Groups in Mayo have given a warm welcome to the decision of Ms. Etain Doyle, Director of Telecommunications Regulations, to extend the timescale for the licensing of such schemes. "This is the first time ever that we can look forward to a period of stability", said Westport based Joe Gibbons of Mayo Community TV who expressed his delight with the decision. Said Mr. Gibbons : "In 1999 following an extensive consultation process, a framework for licensing deflector operations was put in place by Ms Doyle. A feature of the framework was that deflector licenses would not be extended beyond December of this year. This was in the expectation that Digital Terrestrial Television would launch in the period 2000/2001 and that spectrum used by deflectors would be required for DTT. As DTT has not launched yet, the Director considers it appropriate to provide for an extension of deflectors licenses if communities are not to be deprived of access to multi-channel services." Ms Doyle may extend licenses to 31st December, 2003.

New fund to help boost local jobs and services. The Western People this week.

The Western Development Commission is to launch the Local Investment Fund (LIF) on Friday - a unique loan fund to help community and voluntary groups in the Western Region make their areas more attractive places to live and work in by providing loan finance to social economy projects. Mr. Eamon O Cuiv, TD, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development with responsibility for Rural Development, will launch the LIF Fund on Friday. The event will take place on the Aran island of Inish Oir (Inisheer) and will be hosted by Comhar Caomhan Teo, which recently received a loan investment fund to provide community sports facilities. In launching the Local Investment Fund, the WDC will make a call for applications from community and voluntary groups in the region. Groups demonstrating an ability to repay the loan and bring a social dividend to their communities will be considered for loans from £20,000 to £100,000. Applications for this round of funding will close on 25 July.

Achill road a hazard, says accident scene doctor. The Western People this Tuesday.

The doctor who was first on the scene of the accident in which a bus careered off the Mulranny to Achill road injuring many of the 45 student passengers has called for a proper dual carriage way to be built from Castlebar into Achill. Dr Jerry Crowley, who tended to the passengers and driver until ambulances arrived to ferry the injured to Mayo General Hospital, said the road was a death trap and numerous accidents were reported on it every year. "Not far from where the bus went off the road there was another accident involving a car the previous evening" said Dr. Crowley, "I am called to numerous accidents on this road every year." He said it was practically impossible for two big vehicles to pass on the road and overtaking was a danger. "As a medical practitioner I am called out to emergencies but am unable to arrive as fast as I would like because of the condition of the road. Achill is a major holiday destination and I dread the summer because it results in a huge increase in traffic that the road is not geared to take," he said.

Corrib Drilling Complete. The Western People this week.

Enterprise Energy Ireland (EEI) has completed drilling of the fifth and final well on the Corrib gas field and are on target to flow gas by the autumn of 2003, according to Mr Brian O'Cathain, Managing Director. Speaking to journalists on the SEDCO 711 drilling rig, fifty miles west of Belmullet, Mr O'Cathain also revealed that the company proposes to continue exploring for gas at locations in the Slyne Trough to the north and south of the present discovery. While none of the major oil companies are involved in prospecting off Ireland's west coast , EEI, which holds licences to the highest acreage of any company, continues to run a significant exploration programme and "remains optimistic that the area does still offer potential." To date EEI had spent £146m on the exploration appraisal process and the total cost of bringing the discovery into production would be £660 million.

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