Plans to create 190 jobs with the planned reopening of Galmoy zinc and lead mine in Co Kilkenny and Co Laois have suffered a setback.
This follows state agency, Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) lodging an appeal with An Bord Pleanála against the Kilkenny Co Council green light for Shanoon Resources to recommence mining activities across eight townlands near Galmoy in Co Kilkenny.
IFI has told An Bord Pleanála of its concerns that the environmental impact of the reopening of mining on receiving surface water bodies have not been adequately addressed by the applicant.
It states that these concerns were not put to the applicant in the council’s request for further information while the application was before the local authority.
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The IFI claims that “there have been multiple failures by the planning authority in their consideration of this application and that permission should be overturned pending satisfactory resolution of the concerns documented”.
The IFI adds that the applicant has not demonstrated that the proposed treatment systems for the development “are consistent with restoration of these surface water bodies to “good ecological status”.
Last year, Shanoon Resources lodged twin planning applications with Laois and Kilkenny County Councils to restart mining activities.
Laois County Council is due to issue a decision on the application next month.
Planning documents lodged with the councils state that mining activities were ended “prematurely” at Galmoy in 2014.
Mining at Galmoy commenced in 1997 and planning consultants for Shanoon Resources, Tom Phillips & Associates, have stated that “significant ore reserves remain underground”.
The planning application states that the reopening will involve the creation of 100 construction jobs for a one-year period and 90 when operational. The mine will have a lifetime of seven to 10 years once it recommences operations, it is claimed.
The submission by Tom Phillips & Associates stated that “an accessible mineral resource with existing associated infrastructure such as that at the Galmoy mine is rare. There is a recognised global shortage of minerals such as zinc”.
The consultants state that the global shortage of zinc is causing a knock-on effect on the cost of much needed building materials.
The application site is 442 hectares and located 3.5km from the village of Galmoy in Co Kilkenny.
The planning documents state that it is anticipated that 310,000 tonnes of ore will be mined annually while 210,000 tonnes of sorted ore annually will be exported from the site.
