Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

On behalf of the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, I thank the Senators for raising this matter. I will certainly bring their views to the attention of the Minister. As the Senators are aware, final decisions on planning applications are a matter for the relevant planning authority or An Bord Pleanála in the case of planning appeals. The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government is a statutory consultee on any proposed developments which may have a potential impact on the built or natural heritage.

On the proposed development matter raised by the Senators, copies of the relevant planning applications were sent to the Department in early 2005 for comment in accordance with the statutory requirements of the Planning and Development Act and associated regulations. Further information was sought from the applicant by Roscommon County Council and submitted to the Department for comment. While the Department outlined concerns with the overall proposed development, Roscommon County Council granted permission for the two related planning applications on 4 August 2005.

From the architectural heritage perspective, the Department had concerns regarding the potential impact of this large proposed hotel, holiday cottages and associated works on the designed landscape of the former Rockingham Demesne and the setting and visual amenity of a number of monuments and protected structures in the vicinity of the development. As the Senators will be aware, the former Rockingham Demesne is one of the most significant designed landscapes in the country. Despite recommendations made in the historic landscape survey, which was submitted as part of the planning application by the developer, the proposed hotel continued to be sited at a highly sensitive site within the park. It was the Department's view that if a development of this scale proceeded at this proposed location, it would result in permanent and irreversible damage to a highly significant designed landscape which forms an important part of our national heritage.

From a nature conservation perspective, there were also concerns that the proposed development would also have a negative impact on the ecological value of the area. Among the Department's concerns were the likely impact on a number of protected species, including lesser horseshoe bats, pine marten and red squirrel, and the likely damage to a significant area of a broad leaved woodland. Accordingly, the Department appealed the council's decisions to An Bord Pleanála in August 2005. The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government understands that appeals were also lodged by An Taisce and the Cavan Leitrim Environmental Awareness Network.

The Senators are aware that the board recently decided to refuse permission for both proposed developments. Among the reasons given by the board were the injury to the visual amenity of Lough Key Forest Park and the threat to protected species in the vicinity. The Department's reservations in this case were specific to the details of the actual development proposed. This is not necessarily a position against other possible commercial development elsewhere within the former demesne which would not compromise the built and natural heritage of this highly sensitive area. Such proposals must, of course, be pursued through the normal planning process.