Eugene Murphy (Roscommon-Galway, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have grave concerns about the proposal for a waste transfer station at the Poolboy area of Ballinasloe in respect of health and safety. Such a facility could see up to 100 heavy goods vehicles, HGVs, weighing up to 30 tonnes travelling through the town. This will bring increased dangers for cyclists, pedestrians and road users. I will go through some of the main points in the four minutes allotted to me.

I will begin with the question of safety. Safety of the community of Ballinasloe is of the utmost concern. Why is the executive on Galway County Council considering a facility that will involve hundreds of ten, 15 and 30-tonne multi-axle vehicles driving past an acute hospital with a catchment area of 100,000, a secondary school, health centres, built-up urban residential areas and playgrounds? The only available access is through the town. There is also a debate on diesel fumes, which could be another major issue.

The second concern is proximity, which is a major factor in health and environmental concerns.Why is this facility located less than 2 km from Ballinasloe town centre, which has a population of exactly 6,654 people as per the census of 2016? Why would this particular area be considered an appropriate location? It is the largest urban area outside of Galway city centre. Then there is the question which is puzzling most people. Why were another 73 acres purchased for the development of a refuse transfer station? That certainly puzzles a lot of the public in that region.

I will speak briefly about the planning permission. Planning permission for the facility has been approved within an area of Poolboy within the urban district council boundary to which a 1998 High Court order applies.Why did the executive of Galway County Council contravene the 1998 High Court order? The campaigners proposed a policy of a waste industry-free zone within 10 km of highly populated urban area at a meeting with the Minister on 17 January. What progress has been made on this policy, which would bring health benefits to the Irish population? There are several issues in respect of this matter. At present, the people of Ballinasloe are pushing for more industry in the town and I acknowledge things are happening there. The people in the hospital and in the community certainly do not want this facility at Poolboy.

In many respects, Ballinasloe could be thought of as a forgotten town. It has lost a huge amount of jobs but there is still a great sense of community. With more jobs, development and employment coming into the country, they are battling hard in that town and region to get more jobs. The town is on the motorway, 40 minutes from Galway city. Ballinasloe can certainly expand again after losing a couple of thousand jobs over several years.

I know that Deputy Doyle is not the Minister who has full responsibility for this matter and I thank him for appearing in the House to give me some answers. Where do matters stand concerning this transfer station? What is going to be done about the huge public opposition in that region? Several months ago I was at a public meeting that was attended by more than 600 people. It is a live issue. I will give the Minister of State an opportunity to reply, to see what good news he might have for me.

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