Roughan & O’Donovan N14 / N15 to A5 Link Consulting Engineers Environmental Impact Statement – Volume 1 Chapter 2 Background to the Project Ref: 10.152 July 2011 Roughan & O‟Donovan N14/N15 to A5 Link Consulting Engineers Environmental Impact Statement – Volume 1 Chapter 2 Background to the Proposed Development This chapter of the EIS sets out the background to the proposed road development. 2.1 Strategic Context County Donegal is one of the most peripheral counties on the island. The town of Letterkenny, which is part of the Linked Gateway of Letterkenny – Derry designated in the National Spatial Strategy, is located in the north of County Donegal. External access to this gateway is via the national primary routes N13, N14 and N15. The A5 in Northern Ireland is a key access route for County Donegal and Letterkenny and in recognition of this the Irish Government has committed £400m funding for the upgrade of this route. The Northern Ireland authorities have made a similar commitment and this funding is now being used by the Northern Ireland Roads Service to develop the A5 Western Transport Corridor Project (A5 WTC). This is an 85km long strategic road project stretching from Derry City to the border with the Irish Republic south of Aughnacloy in County Tyrone. 2.2 Existing Road Network County Donegal is situated in the north-west of the Republic of Ireland. The National Primary Roads form the main links between the County and the rest of the Republic, the N15 to the south-west and the N14 to the south-east of Ireland. The N14 link, however, passes through Northern Ireland where it continues as the A5 from Strabane until the border is crossed again at Aughnacloy where it becomes the N2 National Primary Road. At present the existing N14 meets the N15 at a roundabout near the centre of Lifford (refer Plate 2.1 below). A short link from here leads to the existing Lifford Bridge which carries the single carriageway road over the River Foyle and into Strabane. In Northern Ireland the road becomes the A38 for a short 600m stretch before culminating in a roundabout junction where it joins the A5 (refer to Figure 2.1, Volume 2). Currently this single carriageway link carries all the through traffic on the N14, N15 and A5 and all the interurban movements between Lifford and Strabane (refer Plate 2.2). Ref: 10.152 July 2011 Page 2/1 Roughan & O‟Donovan N14/N15 to A5 Link Consulting Engineers Environmental Impact Statement – Volume 1 Plate 2.1: Existing N14/N15 Roundabout, Lifford Plate 2.2: Existing Lifford - Strabane Bridge The N14 / N15 to A5 Link Scheme involves the design of a road linking the A5 Western Transport Corridor in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland to the existing N15 in County Donegal, Republic of Ireland. The distance between the junction on the A5 Western Transport Corridor and the proposed N15 junction is approximately 500m (refer to Figure 3.1, Volume 2). The scheme includes a crossing of the River Finn candidate Special Area of Conservation (part of the River Foyle and Tributaries Special Area of Conservation in Northern Ireland). Ref: 10.152 July 2011 Page 2/2 Roughan & O‟Donovan N14/N15 to A5 Link Consulting Engineers Environmental Impact Statement – Volume 1 2.3 Need for the Scheme The strategic aim of the proposed N14 / N15 to A5 Link is to eliminate the current and future bottleneck at the border between Strabane and Lifford. The Link will increase the capacity of the crossing between the N14 / N15 and the A5 resulting in shorter journey times on the strategic route, Letterkenny to Strabane / Northern Ireland and Dublin. The objectives of this scheme are based on the following five criteria: Economy; Safety ; Environment; Accessibility & Social Inclusion; Integration. Economy The improved accessibility of County Donegal both through the A5 WTC and the N14/N15 to A5 Link project linking to the N15 is expected to lead to economic growth in the region, particularly in the area of tourism, as County Donegal is a leading tourist destination in the country. The scheme will also stimulate economic growth in the North West region with improved access to the linked gateway of Letterkenny/ Derry and on to the west of the county from Northern Ireland, Dublin and the south of Ireland. Safety The completion of the N14/N15 to A5 Link project is estimated to lead to a reduction in traffic volumes on other lower standard border crossings with a consequential reduction in the number of accidents. Environment Air Quality & Climate Pollution from traffic sources increases at low traffic speeds and during congested traffic conditions. An improvement in the road infrastructure is likely to increase traffic speeds and reduce congestion along the proposed scheme, thus leading to a considerable improvement in air quality. The air quality and climate assessment has concluded that the residual impacts of the scheme post mitigation will be negligible. Noise & Vibration The noise environment in the vicinity of the proposed N14 / N15 to A5 Link has been characterised as being typical of a semi-rural area in the vicinity of a national road. Increases in noise levels are not predicted to warrant any specific mitigation measures. The scheme will lead to reduced traffic speeds in the vicinity of the new roundabout on the N15 and will also move the mainline of the N15 away from a number of residential dwellings; both of which will benefit residents through lower traffic noise and vibration in the vicinity of the existing route. The noise and vibration assessment has concluded that the residual impacts of the scheme post mitigation will be negligible. Ref: 10.152 July 2011 Page 2/3 Roughan & O‟Donovan N14/N15 to A5 Link Consulting Engineers Environmental Impact Statement – Volume 1 Landscape & Visual The N14/N15 to A5 Link project is planned to tie in with the A5 WTC project in Northern Ireland. While the N14/N15 to A5 Link will have a landscape and visual impact in its own right it will still be viewed in the context of the much larger A5 WTC project. It is concluded that following mitigation the N14/N15 to A5 Link scheme will give rise to no more than a slight to moderate residual impact. Hydrogeology, Geology & Soils The hydrogeological assessment has concluded that there are no significant hydrogeological impacts associated with the proposed Scheme and thus no specific mitigation measures are proposed. The geology and soils assessment has concluded that post mitigation no significant residual impacts on soils or geology is anticipated as a result of the scheme. Cultural Heritage The cultural heritage assessment has concluded that post mitigation no significant residual impacts are anticipated as a result of the scheme. Material Assets – Agricultural Properties Three farms will be affected by the scheme and post mitigation the predicted impact is estimated to be moderate in two cases and negligible impact for the remaining case. Impacts on property (commercial & residential) are expected to be negligible. Water Quality & Fisheries The catchment affected by this scheme is small, as is the area of road surface proposed to be drained. SuDS are proposed for the drainage systems which will eliminate the risk of pollution of the River Finn. Strict mitigation and control measures will be required during construction, particularly when work is being carried out in the flood plain, however provided adequate measures are put in place the potential risk to water quality and fisheries is expected to be minor. The proposal is to construct a multi-span structure across the flood plain. This structure has been selected to minimize the impact on flood flows. There is expected to be a negligible residual impact on the flow of flood waters as a result of the scheme. Ecology Following the implementation of the mitigation measures outlined in the EIS/ES, the residual impacts of the proposed scheme will be localised and primarily temporary in nature. The proposed scheme will not affect the conservation status of the various Annex listed species or the integrity of the River Finn and River Foyle and Tributaries SAC‟s. There will be a temporary impact on the wet grassland habitat within the River Finn SAC which will be allowed to revegetate naturally on completion of the works. The fragmentation of linear features including hedgerows, treelines and linear scrub along the south bank of the river will be mitigated for by landscaping design and will be reconnected in a short to medium timescale. The accommodation of mammal passage for otter and badger under the proposed multi-span bridge and associated mammal fencing will minimise the risks of mortality for these species. The measures employed to avoid any siltation or pollution of the River Finn during the construction and operation phases of the scheme will avoid any impacts on water quality and on all aquatic species. Ref: 10.152 July 2011 Page 2/4 Roughan & O‟Donovan N14/N15 to A5 Link Consulting Engineers Environmental Impact Statement – Volume 1 Human Environment The scheme is expected to have an imperceptible to slight negative impact on the residents on the section of the N15 between the Link road roundabout and the existing Lifford roundabout. This impact is offset by the positive impacts which the scheme will have on the local and regional connectivity and the longer term improvements this will have on the economy and population. Accessibility and Social Inclusion County Donegal is one of the most peripheral counties on the island. Economic indicators point to a region that continues to lag considerably behind other regions. The unemployment rate in County Donegal is approximately twice the national average prompting the Government to set up an Interdepartmental Group to advise on measures to address this problem.