An Bord Pleanála is due to make a decision on a planning application for a solar farm in Castlelyons in the coming days.
Last April, Cork County Council granted permission to Amarenco Solar to construct a solar farm with photovoltaic panels on mounted frames with transformer stations, a delivery station, fencing, CCTV and associated site works within a site area of 8.86 hectares in Ballinvarrig East.
Prior to permission being granted, objections and submissions were made by Castlelyons Development, concerned residents, Cllr June Murphy and Cllr Noel McCarthy.
The objections raised concerns over serious pollution/contamination risks to the Castlelyons water supply, flooding, impact on traffic, noise, fire risk, environmental and tourism impact.
In making their decision and granting conditional permission for the development, the Council deemed that ‘the proposed construction of a solar farm would not seriously injure the visual amenities of the area, the residential amenities of the area, the heritage of the area or the ecology of the area and is acceptable in terms of traffic safety’.
Planning permission was appealed to An Bord Pleanála by Castlelyons Development in late April and the case is due to be decided by this Thursday, August 31st.
Earlier this month, An Bord Pleanála deferred until October on another proposed solar farm in Castlelyons. The ruling on the 5MW solar farm at Corrin/Kill-Saint-Anne North was delayed, according to An Bord Pleanála, due ‘to capacity constraints at board level which will be resolved in the coming months as new board members take up their posts’.
While a third planning decision affecting Castlelyons is due to be made by An Bord Pleanála in September.
This relates to an application to construct 29 houses within the existing Berry Hill estate outside the village.
