Madam - Your commendable Editorial of April 20th refers to the proliferation of Section 140 motions under which building permission is granted against the advice of officials. You go on to say that a third of officials have resigned their posts (for whatever reason has been offered). You rightly state that such undermining of the planning process is not good for "proper planning or for Kerry".
Born in Ireland - and still an Irish citizen - I have lived in the UK since 1988, but I have the pleasure and privilege of owning a beautiful cottage, built in 1900 near Waterville, which I restored over six years. I have seen Kerry destroyed by the erection of new buildings. The entire county, other than where mountains, bog or sea prevent it, has been blighted by single dwellings that possess little architectural value but clearly enjoy the best views obtainable.
Kerry has been ruined - not by holiday homes, not by "blow ins" - but by undiluted avarice and the Government's ignorance and lack of will to protect the environmental heritage with the same vigour as it has protected the non-smoking population. Greed, myopia and blatant abuse of what laughable planning laws exist have been rampant for decades - and this abuse has had the active collusion of central government, particularly in the neutering of quasi-environmental protection bodies.
The "development plan" for Kerry has been contrived in key respects to allow landowners every opportunity to build "new dwellings" for sons and daughters which are declared as essential to maintain social cohesion and labour on the land. But try counting the endless number of derelict buildings across the county - or, indeed, the many unobtrusive sites available to landowners.
Also note who occupies many of these "essential" new dwellings within a very short period after completion - they certainly don't appear to be the sons and daughters of local landowners.
Kerry, like other counties in Ireland, does not run the risk of being visually blighted. It is visually blighted, and the stress imposed on the ecosystem and infrastructure is plain for all to see - Lough Currane and its environs, perhaps at one time the most productive salmon and sea-trout lake in Europe, is wilting under the pressure of raids on its gravel for building and the pollutants from new dwellings into its streams.
Walk from Killorglin to Cahirciveen, visit Ballinskelligs and the surrounds of Cahirdaniel and Derrynane - behold, you mighty, and despair! - Yours, etc.,
M.T. O' RAGHALLIGH,
Leighton Buzzard,
Bedfordshire,
England.