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Inspector’s Report PA0046 Development Erection of 25no. wind turbines of 169m tip height and all ancillary works including 18km new site tracks, 3.5km upgraded, drainage and stream crossings, 2no. borrow pits, 1no. 110kv substation, 33kv MV underground cabling and communications, 16km 110kv HV underground cabling and communications to national grid connection to existing substation at Gorman, 2no. temporary construction compounds, ancillary infrastructure and parking, upgrading of existing entrances and provision of new entrances to public road, coniferous tree-felling. 10-year permission. 30-year operational life from date of commissioning. Location Within the following townland of County Meath: Balreask, Reask, Gravelstown, Emlagh, Castletownmoor, St. John’s Rath, Drakesrath, Clooney, Drakestown, Dowdstown, Dowthstown, Fletcherstown, Glebe, Clongill, Oristown, Rossmeen, Grange Glebe, Wilkinstown, Balsaw, Demailestown, Scottstown, Mullagha, Corballis, Rathcoon, Dunderk, Carniaghanstown, Stackallan, Causestown and Mountainstown. Part located in Gaeltacht Area in townlands of Clongill and Oristown. Planning Authority Meath County Council. PA0046 Inspector’s Report Page 1 of 251 Applicant(s) North Meath Wind Farm Limited. Type of Application Strategic Infrastructure Development Observer(s) 408no. observers Date of Site Inspection 06/01/17, 07/01/17, 31/01/17, 25/03/17 Inspector John Desmond. PA0046 Inspector’s Report Page 2 of 251 Contents 1.0 Site Location and Description .......................................................................... 5 2.0 Proposed Development ................................................................................... 7 3.0 Submissions Received .................................................................................... 9 3.1 Prescribed bodies ................................................................................. 9 3.2 Observers............................................................................................ 27 4.0 Planning History ............................................................................................. 34 4.1 Relevant recent on site planning history ............................................. 34 4.2 Pertinent planning history in the wider vicinity ..................................... 36 5.0 Policy Context ................................................................................................ 38 5.1 European Energy Policy ...................................................................... 38 5.2 National Energy Policy ........................................................................ 38 5.3 Regional Policy ................................................................................... 40 5.4 Local Policy ......................................................................................... 41 5.5 Reference Documents ........................................................................ 43 6.0 Natural Heritage Designations ....................................................................... 43 7.0 Planning Assessment .................................................................................... 44 7.1 Policy .................................................................................................. 45 7.2 Landscape and Visual impact ............................................................. 51 7.3 Cultural and built heritage ................................................................... 72 7.4 Noise ................................................................................................... 86 7.5 Shadow flicker ..................................................................................... 94 7.6 Health impacts .................................................................................... 99 7.7 Flora and fauna ................................................................................. 104 PA0046 Inspector’s Report Page 3 of 251 7.8 Hydrology and water quality .............................................................. 126 7.9 Material Assets – socioeconomics .................................................... 135 7.10 Traffic and transportation. ................................................................. 142 7.11 Telecommunications and aviation ..................................................... 145 7.12 Soils, Geology and Hydrogeology ..................................................... 147 7.13 Air and climate .................................................................................. 153 8.0 Environmental Impact Assessment .............................................................. 156 8.1 Environmental Impact Statement ...................................................... 156 8.2 Environmental Impact Assessment ................................................... 157 9.0 Appropriate Assessment .............................................................................. 163 10.0 Conclusion and recommendation ................................................................ 175 Appendix 1 Summary of Observations PA0046 Inspector’s Report Page 4 of 251 1.0 Site Location and Description 1.1. The application site may be seen to comprise an irregular shaped collection of five interconnected parcels of land accommodating the wind farm proper, contained within an area extending c.6.2km west to east and c.6.2km north to south. In addition, the application site includes a c.12km linear spur to the southeast pertaining to the proposed HV grid connection to the southeast of the main body of the application site. 1.2. The proposed wind farm site is located in north County Meath, contained within the line of the N52 to the northwest, the R162 to the east and the R163 to the south, but the proposed 110kv HV cable route extend east of the R162 and south of the R162 to connect to the existing substation at Gorman, near Stackallan. 1.3. The main body of the site is c.3.5km northwest of the centre of the settlement of Kells, which is the largest settlement in the vicinity (the centre of Navan town is c.9km to the southeast of the main body of the site). The surrounding area is characterised by small rural villages and hamlets and prolific one-off rural housing dispersed along the rural road network. The village of Carlanstown is the nearest identifiable settlement to the proposed site of the wind turbines, located c.920m to the west at the nearest point. Castletown is located c.1.9km to the northeast, Wilkinstown c.2.2km to the east and Baile Ghib (Gaeltacht Area) c.2.9km to the south of the eastern end of the site. The population density of the DEDs within which the main wind farm site is located ranges from 23-27 people per square km, rising to between 34-42 in the southeast section of the site. This range of density is representative of the wider area, expect for the significantly higher population density of Carlanstown (up to 572.7 per sq.km) and Kells (up to 3,328.6 per sq.km)1 being the main urban centres in the vicinity. 1.4. The linear portion of the application site pertaining to the proposed HV cable route and grid connection runs through the settlement of Wilkinstown, the only defined settlement indicated along the proposed route on the OSI digital maps. However, the proposed HV route is quite highly built up with one-off housing, similar to that 1 Census 2011 - http://map.geohive.ie/mapviewer.html PA0046 Inspector’s Report Page 5 of 251 apparent within Wilkinstown, and this is also true of much of the rural road network surrounding the wind farm site. The population density of the DEDs along the route range from 27.1-56.2 per sq.km. 1.5. The wind farm site is centred on Emlagh bog, but is does not appear to encompass any part of the active raised bog, but rather includes drainage, degraded, afforested or natural woodland regeneration areas around the periphery. The vast majority of the wind farm site comprises agricultural lands, excluding the said area surrounding Emlagh bog and an area at the southwest corner. The land is quite flat, ranging generally between 50-60m OD (based on OS Discovery Series). 1.6. The Moynalty River flows through the west of the site to confluence with the River Blackwater c.3.5km to the south. The River Blackwater, as well as the final c.140m of the Moynalty River, is within the River Boyne and River Blackwater SPA and within the River Boyne and River Blackwater SAC (albeit a slightly shorter length of the Moynalty River, at 102m). The Reask River and the Aghnaneane or Hermitage River and Grange River, all being tributaries of the Moynalty, flow through the centre and east of the site, respectively, in addition to numerous smaller streams or watercourses. An unnamed tributary of the Yellow [Blackwater (Kells)] River flows through and drains the southeast section of the site. Numerous watercourses drain the lands through which the proposed HV cable route would run, including the Yellow River (and Wilkinstown), Demailestown and Balsaw which confluence with the Blackwater at Tatestown (within the aforementioned SAC and SPA), and Craigs River and tributaries which confluence with the River Boyne at Cruicetown / Castlefin Lock, east of Stackallan within the River Boyne and River Blackwater SAC and SPA (note the last c.570m of the said watercourse, itself, falls within the River Boyne and River Blackwater SAC). PA0046 Inspector’s Report Page 6 of 251 2.0 Proposed Development 2.1. In the interest of clarity and to ensure compliance with requirements concerning Appropriate Assessment having regard to the EC guidance2