Two mobile telephone companies have applied for permission to build a base station and place masts in the remote Black Valley at the foothills of the Macgillycuddy's Reeks in Kerry.
O2 Communications has applied to the council for permission to build a telecommunications base station and 24m antenna support structure at Looscaunagh Hill. The land is owned by Coillte, and O2 has an option to lease it. The site is adjacent to the main Ring of Kerry road and the site, alongside the Killarney National Park, is also a National Heritage area.
Three years ago Eircell was refused permission for a 30m mast in the Looscaunagh.
In its submission O2 said it would need to build a base station because of the topography of the area and because the mobile telecoms infrastructure was inadequate. It would also need permission for a link transmission site at nearby Moll's Gap. A separate application for a mast at Moll's Gap will be made within weeks.
"It will not be possible to provide coverage to the Black Valley without both applications being granted permission," the application stated.
Residents of the valley, together with councillors, had made representations to O2 in relation to poor coverage, the submission said.
The structure would require a material contravention but the benefits to the area would outweigh any negative impact, it said.
Meanwhile, Vodafone has appealed a refusal by Kerry County Council of permission to erect masts in a quarry at Moll's Gap because of the proximity to the Avoca tourist shop. There had been no objections from the shop.
However, under the Kerry County Development Plan, mobile phone masts cannot be placed within a kilometre of a building.
Twenty miles from Killarney, the Black Valley runs through the Gap of Dunloe and is used mainly for pony trekking and hill walkers. For years, because of its remoteness, the rugged nature of its territory and the desire to preserve its scenery, the valley suffered from poor telecommunications.
With no mobile or fixed line telephone systems, its 100 residents have depended on a specially developed radio phone link for communications - a link that sometimes fails.
Last month, following a deputation of residents from the Black Valley to an Oireachtas all-party committee in the Dáil, representatives from Eircom agreed to come up with a better radio link system.
Politicians of all hues have joined the campaign for a better telecommunications system for the valley.