Third-party objectors, as they are officially known, have long been the bane of property developers' lives. And what makes them even more irritating is their remarkable success in winning nearly half the appeals they make to An Bord Pleanβla.
Further restrictions on the rights of third parties, proposed in a new set of draft planning regulations published last week by the Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, may have been designed to mollify the construction lobby, but they are unlikely to stem the tide.
Last year, third-party objectors accounted for 41 per cent of the 4,833 appeals determined by the board.
This year, it is estimated that this figure will rise to 43 per cent, an all-time record. And what this reflects is a more acute awareness of environmental issues.
An Bord Pleanβla is aware, of course, that it has been the subject of strong criticism from IDA Ireland, among others, for taking too much time to determine appeals against major developments, particularly where inward investment and jobs are at stake.
But the appeals board has to "have regard to" the rights of third parties and to the National Sustainable Development Strategy, published in 1997, which elevated the environment to the same level as economic and social considerations.
One of the most surprising revelations from yesterday's briefing on the board's annual report for 2000 was that nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of the 5,300 appeals lodged last year related to "one-off" housing in the countryside.
The report noted that 57 per cent of these appeals had been made by applicants who had been refused planning permission by their local authorities, while 36 per cent were third parties - such as An Taisce - objecting to decisions to grant.
Prospective bungalow builders tend to get short shrift from the appeals board, with only 8 per cent of their appeals succeeding. By comparison, the rate of success of third parties objecting to new houses in rural areas is running at 57 per cent.
This reflects the board's commitment to the National Sustainable Development Strategy - which takes a dim view of urban-generated rural housing - and to its interpretation of the letter and spirit of local authority development plans.
In general, these plans are opposed to the continued proliferation of sporadic housing in the countryside; indeed, it was largely for this reason that An Bord Pleanβla turned down plans by the President, Mrs McAleese, for a house in Co Roscommon.
Responding to calls for the abolition of the board on grounds it was out of touch with local needs, its chairman, Mr John O'Connor, noted that only 7 per cent of all planning decisions made by local authorities end up being appealed.
If local politicians wanted to make it easier for people to get planning permission for one-off houses in rural areas, they would need to review the policies laid down in their own local authorities' development plans to make that aim explicit.
Otherwise, the appeals board must take at face value the presumption against the spread of urban-generated rural housing.
As things stand, it is clear that if more such cases were appealed to the board, the "Bungalow Blitz" phenomenon would be less intense.
On a broader front, the board has not yet experienced a significant fall-off in the number of appeals as a result of the slowing down of economic activity over the past few months. However, it is likely that this will change markedly in 2002.
A code of practice on archaeology for Bord Gβis was launched yesterday by the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands, Ms de Valera.
Bord Gβis has given a commitment to employ a project archaeologist at the pre-planning stage of a major scheme. The gas supplier has also agreed to carry out detailed planning and early mitigation before the construction phases of projects.