Martin Conway (Fine Gael)

I commend Senator Kelly on introducing this Bill. This area requires much discussion and analysis. From the perspective of this House, it is a first and positive step. Many "ifs" and "buts" have been expressed by a number of people. I have been contacted by some groups in my area of County Clare, as Senators Kelly and Leyden in Roscommon and others have been. Such groups have issues with the current law and the fact that wind turbines will be located near their dwelling houses. County Clare is awash with wind as the Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, knows well because she is a regular visitor. Clare County Council was one of the first local authorities to adopt a proper wind strategy, including buffer zones. Even with such a strategy, there are issues of concern. Senator Kelly is proposing a 500 m buffer zone around wind turbines, but in some cases in Clare we are talking about a distance of 2 km. I would be more comfortable having a minimum buffer zone of 1 km. A distance of 2 km should be standard, rather than 500 m which is extremely close to dwellings for noise. In addition, wind turbines may interfere with panoramic views of the ocean.

Clare County Council decided the best approach was to adopt a proper wind strategy. The council went through the consultation process with various stakeholders on both sides, received their submissions and held hearings to come up with a proper strategy. Even with that there are still significant objections. A detailed national strategy is required at this stage to deal with the issue. Arguments from abroad suggest that wind is perhaps not the best form of creating energy and that alternative ways should be examined. Denmark and other countries are no longer convinced that wind turbines are either appropriate or efficient.

Alternative energy is in its infancy here and we have not had a proper discussion on it. My biggest fear is that we could irreparably damage our tourism product if we are not careful. Just because an area has no dwelling houses, it does not mean it is not valuable in terms of its intrinsic beauty; it may be part of our overall tourism offering. In Clare, hill-walking and rock-climbing are significant tourism pursuits. Many foreign visitors come specifically for walking holidays, irrespective of the weather conditions. We must not destroy our natural resources by locating wind farms in inappropriate areas. What would have been regarded as wasteland before, is now part of our natural tourism resource because visitors are climbing mountains in remote areas. The Minister of State will be aware of parts of County Clare which in recent years have begun to attract hill-walkers, especially at weekends. Every year the numbers taking part in hiking and similar pursuits are increasing. Such leisure activities could be compromised by the development of wind turbines.

We must be careful and we do need guidelines. We must also ensure that such guidelines are fair and take into account what we are trying to achieve. Most of all, we must respect the integrity of people's homes. When people buy a home they have certain rights and expectations that it should not be taken away from them. I look forward to having a further, more detailed and comprehensive debate on this particular issue in future.