An Bord Pleanála Inspector’s Report Reference No: 09.PA0041 Proposed Development: Erection of 47 wind turbines with a tip height of up to 169m in 5 no. clusters, access tracks, a sub-station, a permanent metrological mast, borrow pits and associated works, temporary compounds, temporary alterations to the public road for the delivery of turbines at Ballynakill (10 turbines), Windmill (3 turbines), Drehid- Hortland (21 turbines), Derrybrennan (2 turbines) and Cloncumber (11 turbines), Co. Meath and Co. Kildare with connection via underground medium voltage cables which run predominantly along the public road network to the proposed substation at Drehid and connection via high voltage (220kV) underground cables to one of two existing substations at Woodland, Co. Meath or Maynooth, Co. Kildare, (subsequently altered to connection at Dunfirth) Planning Authority: Meath County Council and Kildare County Council Applicant: Element Power Ltd. Type of Application: Strategic Infrastructure Submissions and observations Kildare County Council: Yes 09.PA0041 An Bord Pleanála Page 1 of 361 Meath County Council: Yes Observers: Yes Prescribed bodies: Yes Date of Site Inspections: Various June/July 2015, 10 Feb 2016, 22 May, 24 May 2016 Inspector: Mary Kennelly, Senior Planning Inspector Appendices: Appendix 1 Report of Senior Planning Inspector John Desmond Appendix 2 Avian Ecology Report – Howard Fearn Appendix 3 Compendium of third party observations Appendix 4 Observations in response to Further Information and to SEVESO/COMAH Notification 09.PA0041 An Bord Pleanála Page 2 of 361 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 Introduction 4 2.0 Site location and Description 6 3.0 Proposed Development 9 4.0 Submissions received 20 4.1 Planning authority – Kildare Co. Co. 20 4.2 Planning authority – Meath Co. Co. 31 4.3 Prescribed bodies/Statutory consultees 36 4.4 Third party observations 47 4.4.4 Process/Legal matters 49 4.4.5 Policy/guidance 58 4.4.6 Landscape & visual amenity 71 4.4.7 Cultural heritage 80 4.4.8 Socio-economic impacts 85 4.4.9 Aviation Impacts 99 4.4.10 Geological/soil impacts 102 4.4.11 Hydrological/drainage impacts 104 4.4.12 Ecological impacts 110 Note – Residential amenity/Noise/Shadow flicker/Health/Property/Transport all summarised in John Desmond Report Appendix 1 5.0 Applicant’s response to submissions 126 5.2 FI Response to Kildare Co. Co. 127 5.3 FI Response to Meath Co. Co. 141 5.4 FI Response to Third Parties by topic 143 6.0 Responses to applicant’s FI submission 166 7.0 SEVESO submissions 184 8.0 Policy and guidance 184 9.0 Planning Assessment 197 9.1 Principle/Need for development 198 9.2 Preliminary legal and other matters 206 9.3 Assessment of Alternatives 216 9.4 Aviation 220 9.5 Landscape and Visual Impact 229 9.6 Archaeological, architectural and Cultural heritage 252 9.7 Residential amenity – noise, shadow flicker, health 269 9.8 Socio-economic impacts 278 9.9 Ecology 290 9.10 Soils and Geology 300 9.11 Hydrology and water quality 303 9.12 Traffic and Transport 312 10.0 Environmental Assessment 320 11.0 Appropriate Assessment 346 12.0 Recommendation 356 09.PA0041 An Bord Pleanála Page 3 of 361 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 The application This is a direct planning application to the Board under Section 37(E) of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended by the Planning and Development (Strategic Infrastructure) Act, 2006. The application is being made by Element Power Ireland Ltd. to erect 47 no. wind turbines with an overall tip height of 169m, access tracks, a sub-station, a permanent meteorological mast, borrow pits and associated works, including temporary alterations to public roads. The proposed turbines are arranged in five separate clusters, which are connected by means of underground medium voltage cables, and would have a combined output of up to 125MW. The majority of the proposed turbines are located within Co. Kildare with just two turbines located within Co. Meath. The proposed cabling runs predominantly along the public roads and would link each cluster to the proposed substation at Drehid. The power would be converted to AC at the substation and transported to the National Grid. The application as originally submitted proposed connection to the grid by means of underground high voltage cables to one of two existing substations at either Woodland, (north of Kilcock), Co. Meath or Maynooth, Co. Kildare. However, the grid connection was subsequently revised on 24th September 2015. The proposed HV cable routes to Maynooth and Kilcock were omitted and a new proposal was made to connect to the grid at Dunfirth, at the site of an existing substation located near the proposed cable route connecting the proposed windfarm to the proposed substation. The application is for a ten-year permission and it is envisaged that the wind farm would operate for a period of 30 years, once commissioned. The application is accompanied by the following documentation • Environmental Impact Statement • Natura Impact Statement • Photomontages • Drawings 1.2 Pre-application consultation Having regard to the provisions of Section 37B, the applicant, Element Power Ireland Ltd., engaged in pre-application consultation with the Board, (Ref. 09.PC0186). Three meetings were held between An Bord Pleanala and the applicant and its agents on 4th November 2014, on 23rd January 2015 and on 13th February 2015. A meeting was also held between An Bord Pleanala and one of the planning authorities, Kildare County Council, on 4th February 2015. Issues which were identified are set out in the records of the meetings and are also summarised in the Inspector’s Report. By Order dated 24th March 2015, the Board decided that 09.PA0041 An Bord Pleanála Page 4 of 361 the proposed development of a 47 turbine wind farm in five clusters at Maighne, Co. Kildare, together with a new substation, underground cable connections between each wind farm cluster and the proposed substation and onward connection to one of two options for export to the national grid would be strategic infrastructure within the meaning of section 37A of the Planning and Development Act, 2000, as amended. The current application to the Board is made on foot of that decision. 1.3 Submissions and observations Submissions were received by the Board in response to the application from each of the two planning authorities, from a number of prescribed bodies and from 807 no. third parties, including several public representatives and interest groups. 1.4 Further information The applicant responded to the submissions and observations on 24th September, 2015. This submission included revisions to the application, significant additional information, a detailed response to the issues raised by each of the planning authorities and a response on a topic basis to the issues raised in the third party observations. The principal revisions/significant additional information related to the revised grid connection, (as referred to in 1.1 above), a further visual impact assessment with an additional set of photomontages for Longwood Village ACA, and further detailed information in the form of structural surveys of the proposed transport/cable routes, including additional information regarding site entrances and specific node points. The additional information also included a further detailed response to the submission by the Department of Defence on Aviation matters, information on typical turbine bases and details regarding the Longwood Water supply (Clonguiffen). 1.5 Response to Further Information The further information was advertised and a further 143 submissions were received including detailed responses from Kildare Co. Co. and Meath Co. Co. 1.6 Need for Oral Hearing The Board considered a memorandum from the Inspector on the matter of whether an oral hearing should be held in respect of the proposed development at a meeting on the 10th February, 2016. The Board decided, by a majority of 3:1, that an oral hearing should not be held generally in accordance with the reasoning set out in the Inspector’s memorandum and cited the following reasons and considerations: 09.PA0041 An Bord Pleanála Page 5 of 361 Reasons and considerations Notwithstanding the volume of public submissions received in relation to the application, having regard to the comprehensive nature of the documentation available from all of the parties to the case – including the response of the applicant (received on 24th September 2015) to the observations received, and the subsequent further submissions received from observers – the Board is satisfied that the considerations arising can be satisfactorily addressed without the need for an oral hearing in this case. 2.0 SITE LOCATION AND DESCRIPTION 2.1 The site is located across North County Kildare and South County Meath. It has a stated area of 1,389 hectares and is generally linear in shape. The topography is relatively flat or gently sloping, and the Bog of Allen dominates the landscape of the general area. It consists primarily of improved agricultural farmland, raised bog, cut-over bog and forestry with a number of small towns, villages and a considerable amount of dispersed housing. The area comprising the proposed wind farm clusters with associated underground cabling extends from the villages of Longwood and Enfield in the North-West in a generally southerly direction towards Rathangan, passing in the general vicinity of Carbury and Edenderry to the west and Allenwood and Prosperous to the east. The first of the originally proposed grid connection options (Option 1) extended from Drehid, (south of Enfield) in a north-easterly direction through Johnstown Bridge, Enfield and Kilcock to the existing substation at Woodland near the M3. Option 2 extended in a south-easterly direction passing Donadea Forest Park towards Taghadoe substation, which is south of Maynooth. The revised grid connection is to an existing 110kV substation which is located just to the south of the proposed cable route linking the Hortland cluster (most easterly of the clusters) to the proposed substation at Drehid.