Kathryn Reilly (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will not go over old ground, other than to reflect on some of the concerns that have been expressed to me. My colleague Senator Cullinane will respond to the comments made during the course of the debate. All of us will be aware from constituency meetings and social media of the considerable public opposition to the construction of pylons. This was highlighted in the large number of submissions made to EirGrid on the issue. The construction of this infrastructure should be put on hold to allow a plan to be designed that addresses the concerns of residents and exploits our natural resources to their greatest potential.

I commend those communities in Counties Monaghan, Armagh, Cavan, Tyrone and Meath which since 2007 have pursued a campaign against plans by EirGrid and Northern Ireland Energy, NIE, to impose high-voltage overhead power lines and associated pylons on them. They have now been joined by communities from the west, midlands and the south, because this is an issue that affects communities throughout the island. I pay particular tribute to the Trojan work done by campaigning organisations in frustrating and delaying the efforts of EirGrid and NIE to ignore the concerns of unwilling host communities and impose their structures on our natural landscape.

The landscapes that will be blighted by this are tourism resources and of massive benefit to the economy. Erecting these pylons will do untold damage to our reputation in tourism. There will not be much of a repeat of The Gathering if we do so.

Real concerns were heard during the course of the debate about health, the landscape, the environment and the economic development of the areas concerned. To their credit, most of the communities involved have not expressed opposition to the need for interconnectors or an enhanced electricity network. They have, simply and correctly, demanded that the cables be placed underground. Many reports clearly prove that putting power lines underground is possible and feasible. Many argue that in the medium and long term undergrounding is economically beneficial. To reiterate what Senator David Cullinane said in his opening remarks, EirGrid claims undergrounding would be two and a half or three times the cost of pylons. It had previously stated it would be ten times more expensive and before that, that it would be 40 times more expensive. Before that again, it stated it could not be done.

We have heard a lot about the Danish model. The Danish Government has set in train a process to ensure all high voltage power lines will in the future be placed underground. It is time the Governments, North and South, followed suit. We should aim to make Ireland a world leader in underground technology which is evolving fast. We should aim to enhance our reputation in terms of tourism and our natural environment. Having cables above ground, with massive pylons, will do untold damage. It is cutting our nose off to spite our face.