A local councillor is calling on Coilte to halt their plans to erect wind turbines on Mount Leinster.
Fine Gael’s Tommy Kinsella will raise the issue at today’s meeting of Carlow County Council following concerns from locals over the proposed plans.
1,900 people have signed an online petition asking that you Save Mount Leinster from Industrial Development. (See that petition here).
Coilte previously told KCLR that it had carried out an extensive 20-month community engagement programme in parallel with the design and Environmental Impact Assessment process, which has actively sought input from the local community, and particularly those living closest to the proposed wind farm site. (Read that statement and more here).
Cllr Kinsella says “It’s in the Kilbranish area of Mount Leinster, it’s about one and a half miles from the Nine Stones, I’ve had a number of very concerned people contact me, they feel there has been very little consultation, definitely not enough consultation, with the local people to inform them, these proposed structures are 175 feet high”.
He adds “People are very concerned about this, I’m a firm believer that consultation is better than confrontation and I’d be calling on Coilte who are putting up these mills, to suspend the application until they go back and consult properly with the local people”.
It’s not the only concern being raised for the area as Cllr Kinsella explains “I’m calling on Carlow County Council to make arrangements with the Dog Warden to visit Mount Leinster, the Nine Stones area particularly at the weekend to ensure that the bylaws regarding control of dogs are fully enforced, on that part of Mount Leinster there’s a lot of sheep owners and a lot of sheep on the mountains particularly this time of the year because the ewes are heavily pregnany, now some people may not know, they may allow their dogs will go for a run and immediately when the sheep see the dogs they’re very fearful that they’ll run and maybe go through a ditch and they may miscarry their baby lambs”.
