This article is from page 22 of the 2009-05-26 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 22 JPG
A SENIOR member of Clare County Council claimed yesterday that An Taisce wants west Clare returned to a green wilderness devoid of people and any semblance of community life.
Kilrush-based Cllr Tom Prendev- ille (FF) was reacting angrily to an An Taisce statement that it intends to refer the adoption of the West Clare Plan to the Minister for the Envi- ronment, John Gormley TD, due to overzoning for housing.
At the council’s May meeting, Cllr Prendeville proposed the adoption of the plan and said the twin objectives were tackling depopulation and pro- viding for the economic development of west Clare.
He said An Taisce “has more con- cern for the corncrake and the cuck- oo than it has for people”.
Cllr Prendeville accused An Taisce’s Heritage Officer, Ian Lum- ley, of having “a brass neck”.
He added, “How dare Mr Lumley dictate to the rural people of Ireland” An Taisce has done more than any other organisation to destroy com- munity life in rural Ireland.”
Cllr Prendeville said Mr Lumley and An Taisce should “hump off”.
“An Taisce appear to be hell-bent on destroying any vestiges of rural life and the ordinary people will stand openly in defiance against this ‘secret society’. An Taisce has never come forward to make one positive idea about rural Ireland.
“Is the power to adopt the West Clare Area Plan a matter for council- lors or are we just stool pigeons and do the bidding of An Taisce?”’
Cllr Prendeville said An Taisce wants to return west Clare to what it looked like 10,000 years ago, and herd young men and women into towns and villages.
Cllr Prendeville said that the West Clare Local Area Plan was agreed
after 15 meetings between council- lors and officials in a spirit of part- nership. In adopting the west Clare plan, councillors dismissed concerns expressed by the Department of the Environment over the overzoning for housing in the sparsely populated area. In voting through the plan 22- 1, councillors have zoned land for housing that will accommodate the additional 16,036 homes.
The Department of the Environ- ment point out that the plan indicates that there will be demand for be- tween only 597 and 1,019 new homes during the six years of the plan.
The councillors voted through the plan in spite of Senior Planner, Gor- don Daly warning that by adopting the plan, the council was breaching the EU Habitats Directive and the Department may refer the matter to the Attorney General’s Office.
The councillors also voted through fresh rezonings in almost every town and village in west Clare.
In a letter to the council warning not to overzone the lands, the depart- ment submission states, ““The council is requested to reduce the extent of residential land use zonings outlined in the settlements and clusters in the draft plan as it does not appear to have any basis in relation to the Clare Housing Strategy or any other plan or strategy.”
The council’s overzoning takes in Ballynacally, Bealaha, Cooraclare, Cree, Doonaha, Doonbeg, Kilbaha, Kilkee, Killimer, Kilmihil, Kilmur- ry McMahon, Knockerra, Lissyca- sey, Mullagh and Querrin.