James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail)
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I express my gratitude that this topic has been selected for discussion. It is incredibly important. It relates to the rapid development of solar across my constituency and in Cork North-Central and Cork South-Central. This is about what I see as the wholesale changing of the function of agricultural lands in my constituency and their use as solar farms. We are starting to see what these solar farms look like, with the developments that have already taken place in Midleton, and how they change the landscape.

I will run through a number of serious concerns I have in a few different areas. This evening, a public meeting will be held in the Killeagh and Inch parish on what will become one of the largest solar farms in the country. This will involve the change of use of lands from dairy, including one of the largest dairy farms in the country, to solar. I am told by those with whom we have engaged in the community that substation infrastructure has been put in place to handle approximately 2,500 acres of solar in that area. I raise this because this development is not designed to accompany an existing industry or incorporate the residential or commercial power needs of a local area in a sustainable way. This is commercial electricity production that involves, in my view, the transitioning of land away from agriculture towards solar production and the removal of the agricultural facet of that land.

In case people are unaware of how this works, companies will come in and take the land for leases in excess of two or three decades. This involves the complete transition of the land, which will not have any livestock on it. There was some discussion around using it for sheep but my understanding from the people I have engaged with is that this can cause some difficulty in relation to electrics, wires and maintenance. It involves, therefore, the complete removal of livestock and tillage from those lands and their use for solar. In the Cork East constituency this is happening on a scale that is extremely concerning.

Given what is happening in my constituency, I feel that the return from the circular economy is incredibly poor. Dairy farming, beef production and tillage would keep employment in the local area in veterinary, healthcare, farm relief, agricultural aggregate sales such as fertiliser and animal fields, machinery sales and all the professions that come with operating an operational farm involving livestock and tillage. I could go on because the list is as long as my arm. It creates huge employment and that is before we even get to processors, such as Dairygold or Tirlán, formerly Glanbia, the Kerry Group and Ornua, and the thousands of people employed by those processors, not only in my constituency but in other rural areas. If what is happening in east Cork is allowed to continue, it could lead to devastating consequences for the dairy industry. Nobody seems to be picking up on this.

Farming needs to stand up for itself and so do the commentators. Solar is not farming. It is commercial electricity production. Someone has to come in here and say that. I am in favour of rooftop solar. I am also in favour of small portions of land, whether it is 10 acres or 20 acres of a holding, being used for solar on dairy farms as a supplementary income to farmers and to give income stability. I do not support hundreds of acres - up to 1,000 acres with some projects that have been proposed and discussed in excess of 1,000 acres - being used for wholesale transition away from agricultural use to commercial electricity. The State needs to do something about it urgently.

John Cummins (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy O'Connor for raising this important issue, as I know he has done on many occasions in this Chamber. It gives me the opportunity to update Members on the development of solar farms on agricultural lands in Cork and across the country.

I highlight first that the recently published Programme for Government 2025: Securing Ireland's Future reaffirms Ireland's ambitious target of having 8 GW of solar capacity connected to the grid by 2030 to meet the requirement of 80% of electricity demand supplied by renewables. Solar energy is a growing source of electricity, with circa 1.5 GW of solar photovoltaic, PV, capacity currently installed. Further solar capacity will be required and that will involve a combination of the micro generation the Deputy spoke of and larger projects.

The programme for Government has committed to a land use review to ensure that optimal land use options inform all relevant Government decisions. The second phase of the land use review, which is under way, will seek to identify the key demands on land, both public and private, to inform policies for land use across key Government objectives, including socioeconomic, climate, biodiversity, water and air quality outcomes.

From a planning perspective, the programme for Government contains a commitment to introduce planning guidelines for solar energy developments. In light of this commitment, my Department has begun an initial scoping process to identify the component factors relevant to the preparation of these guidelines, including the possible timeframe for publication. It is important to say that any future guidelines will contain a process for public participation where all views can be taken on board, including Deputy O'Connor's. Until the planning guidelines for solar energy developments are finalised, there are no specific planning guidelines currently in place that deal with solar energy development, as is the case for most types of development. Proposals for individual solar energy developments, including on greenfield sites, are subject to the statutory requirements of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, in the same manner as other proposed developments, with planning applications made to the relevant local authority in the first instance. In making a decision on a planning application for a solar energy development, a planning authority must consider the specific merits or otherwise of the application, in line with the proper planning and sustainable development of the area, having regard to, among other matters, the provisions of the development plan including any zoning objectives; any submissions or observations received from the public and the statutory consultees; and any relevant ministerial or government policies, including any guidelines issued by my Department.

With respect to the regulation of solar energy developments more generally, planning plays an important role from both a policy and legislative perspective. From a policy perspective, the national planning framework, NPF, sets the long-term strategy for the spatial development of Ireland to 2040 and informs the hierarchy of plans that cascade to regional and local levels. The draft revised NPF, which was passed by Cabinet yesterday, includes enhanced policy support for renewable energy development, including, in particular, the introduction of regional renewable electricity capacity allocations for solar development to achieve the national targets set out in the Climate Action Plan 2024.

From a planning legislation perspective, the Planning and Development Act, which was signed into law last year, will deliver a range of measures to enhance the existing legislative framework. As I said, we are in the early stages of developing guidelines for solar developments. I take on board the concerns that the Deputy is raising and look forward to following up with him.

James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State. In my opening statement, I referred to what is happening with the solar development in the Killeagh-Inch area and Mountuniacke, but there are others, north of Midleton, in Leamlara, and Lisgoold, and towards Watergrasshill, more are being proposed in Kilquane around Knockraha. What is also disturbing, as the Minister of State highlighted, is the lack of regulation, which, by the way, really suits the developers. They love it. The famous statement is "Beware of Greeks bearing gifts", but I think one should beware of Greeks bearing opinions. Quite a lot of well-known people in Ireland are working as "lobbyists" with regard to this.

I do not need to remind anyone that a few years ago, Midleton was underwater because of the river flooding, not coastal flooding, that occurred in Midleton town, which damaged more than 900 homes and properties. Up the road, solar farms are being developed and planning permission is being sought in several areas for further expansion of that. It makes no sense. My great fear as a TD is that another flooding event will occur, similar to what happened with Storm Babet, before the flood defences are completed, which will take a number of years because it has to go through the same planning process, but if you want to go up the road and build a bloody solar farm, it is fine. It makes zero sense. As I said, the commentators on this are pretty well-known. Some are former election candidates. They have plenty of opinions. It has to be said in the House under privilege.

When you go across the world, you do not walk into a supermarket in any foreign country and see an Irish solar panel on the shelf. You see our agricultural goods, the best of what we make, especially dairy. If this is allowed to expand at the pace I believe will happen over the course over the next five to ten years, this has the capacity to have a detrimental impact on the country's dairy sector and nobody is talking about it because it is an easy buck. The return for the circular economy is appalling. It makes the landowner and the company wealthy. They sell it off and move on and another asset management firm takes over once it is developed and finished. Somebody has to recognise that for the 169,000 people who work in agrifood in this country.

John Cummins (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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As I said in my opening statement, and as I know the Deputy knows, there are no regulations currently in place but on foot of the programme for Government we are in the process of developing those. It is important to say that they will involve a public consultation element which people will be able to feed into. It is also important to mention that the planning system as a whole is subject to significant reform at the moment, particularly in the context of the Planning and Development Act and the national planning framework. These processes will augment the existing system, including that of solar development.

That said, I understand the concerns the Deputy is raising. I am from Waterford, where we have had a significant number of solar developments. That is why, in the programme for Government, we are committed to introducing guidelines. It is important to say that looking to our targets and achieving 8 GW will require larger developments of solar energy and it will also require a significant ramp-up of microgeneration, which I know the Deputy cited in his opening remarks. It is not a case of either-or. It is a combination of both. We are committed to introducing guidelines. Significant reforms are under way in the context of the planning process. I will work with the Deputy and others in this House to make sure that we get them right and that we take on board the concerns of the public in the public participation that will be part of any development of the guidelines going forward.