Locals win Supreme Court battle against wind farm

A SUPREME Court decision quashing planning permission for a ten-turbine windfarm in the Finuge area has been hailed this week as a ‘David vs Goliath’ moment for a group of locals protesting against the development since it was first mooted over four years ago.

However, the protestors believe that the Supreme Court order does not mark the end of the saga. “We might have won the battle, but the war is still on,” one of the group told The Kerryman this week.

The Supreme Court decision came after a lengthy and costly legal battle, originally mounted in the High Court last year where the North Kerry Wind Turbine Awareness Group (NKWTAG) appealed An Bord Pleanála’s July 2016 decision to grant Stacks Mountain Windfarm permission to construct the windfarm.

The High Court upheld the Bord’s decision, but NKWTAG was given leave to appeal this to the Supreme Court. The group argued the Bord did not adequately assess the development in terms of its environmental impact in an area governed by EU Habitats Directives protecting resident whooper swans, bats, otters and hen harriers. Before the case could be heard it emerged the Bord would concede the appeal. The Bord is now to carry out a detailed EIA and appropriate assessment of the windfarm.