Some 28 individuals and companies have submitted planning objections to the 75,000 sq m (807 293.281 sq ft) Terminal 2 facility planned for Dublin airport. Emmet Oliver reports.

It is understood Ryanair and Ulick McEvaddy's Dublin Airport Terminal 2 Limited are among those who have lodged objections. The remaining objections are believed to have come from local residents, some of whom are based in the St Margaret's area.

The substantial number of objections threatens to slow the project down. The Government has set a date of Autumn 2009 for the terminal to open. Despite the objections, the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) has maintained that it has taken potential objections into account.

Fingal County Council will ultimately have to make a decision on the project which is set to cost up to €600 million when enabling works are included. If Fingal decides to approve the project, objectors still have the opportunity to appeal to An Bord Pleanála. The option of a court challenge is also open to objectors like Ryanair. The Fingal planning authorities recently dealt a blow to the DAA's plans when it failed to give approval for a new marquee at the airport with a capacity for 1,000 passengers.

The council was not satisfied with the plans and requested additional information on a number of issues. It decided that the canvas structure envisaged by the DAA would have an adverse visual impact. It insisted on a "prefabricated rigid material of attractive finish" for the building and directed the DAA to submit new architect's drawings.

The council also requested additional information on the stability of the structure and the impact it would have on parking spaces and traffic circulation. As a result, the DAA said it could not be used in the summer.

However, the DAA remains confident the planning authorities will take a more sympathetic view of Terminal 2. The chief executive of the DAA Declan Collier has spoken on several occasions about the need for greater capacity at the airport, in addition to the Pier D facility.

Mr McEvaddy has been a long time proponent of a privately owned terminal at the airport. He and his brother Desmond are substantial landowners in the area and they claim they can build a terminal at a lower cost than the DAA. Mr McEvaddy has a complaint before the Competition Authority at present concerning access to the runway at Dublin.

A proportion of local residents in the area are opposed to any expansion of the airport, pointing to noise pollution and traffic congestion resulting from its expansion of recent years. However, there is also substantial support for airport expansion in the local hinterland. The airport is one of the largest employer on Dublin's northside.