Landfill site extension dismays residents

An Bord Pleanála yesterday approved a major extension to a large landfill site at Gortnadromma, Co Limerick.

The capacity at the landfill site is expected to run out towards the end of next year and yesterday the planning board granted permission to Limerick County Council to extend the life of the landfill by a further seven and a half years, with a capacity to accept an additional 900,000 tonnes of waste.

However, the extra capacity at the site - which is in the parish of Kilcolman, 54km west of Limerick city - is less than half that sought by the council, which lodged an application for an additional two million tonnes of waste to extend the landfill's lifespan to between 15 and 20 years.

The board decision yesterday granted planning for only five of the 11 cells sought, ruling that inadequate information had been submitted about the depth of peat to be excavated and the likely impact on ground-water, arising from the development of cells in the southern part of the proposed extension.

The appeals board also confirmed a compulsory purchase order (CPO) for the entire 100 acres sought by the local authority, which places it in a strong position to secure planning for the additional cells.

In granting permission, the appeals board stated that the proposal would not be prejudicial to public health, would not cause injury to the amenities of property in the area and would not result in significant adverse effects on the environment.

The board stated that it made its decision having regard to the existing use of lands for landfilling at this location; the character of the landscape in the area and the Waste Management Plan for Limerick/Clare/Kerry region 2001.

The decision was greeted with dismay by the local community, which has been campaigning against the landfill for several years. A spokesman for the Gortnadromma Action Group, Tim Mullane, said that while the board only granted permission for five of the 11 cells, it leaves the door open for the council to seek planning for the remaining cells.

"We still believe that the landfill is having, and will continue to have, a detrimental effect on ground water and all our drinking water."

Mr Mullane said the residents would examine whether there was a way in which they could seek a High Court judicial review of the decision.

The application was also opposed by the the Abha BháAngling Group and the local Kilcolman National School.

Its principal, Mary Liston, said she was very saddened and disappointed by the decision.

"The landfill has severely affected numbers attending the school," she said.

At the three-day oral hearing into the application in Limerick last November, the council's senior engineer, Tom Tarpey, admitted that the emission of water from the surface water settlement tank at the site was a likely contributory factor to a river fish kill last May.

The council still has to secure a licence from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to operate the new landfill extension and a draft decision is expected soon.