Planning revamp in pipeline

The Minister for the Marine, Mr Ahern, has reiterated the Government's intention to introduce a "fast-track" planning system for major infrastructural projects, which may bypass An Bord Pleanála.

The Minister was speaking in Donegal yesterday before he visited the Dooish exploration well 125 km off the coast.

Referring to the recent An Bord Pleanála ruling on the Corrib gas field terminal in Mayo, the Minister said there was "concern about the length of time it was taking for major infrastructure to get through the planning process".

Mr Ahern said that the Government was "examining this as a matter of urgency with a view to introducing a streamlined process for infrastructure projects of national significance".

Any such move is bound to attract stiff opposition from environmentalists, but it is understood that the Government's determination to devise such a system was heavily influenced by the Bord Pleanála ruling on the €800 million Corrib gas field terminal project.

Recent comments by both the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, and the Tánaiste, Ms Harney, also indicate a growing impatience within Government circles over planning procedure.

An Bord Pleanála rejected the planning approval for the Corrib gas terminal at Bellanaboy, Co Mayo, because of the high risks posed by peat transferred from the proposed site and overlaid on neighbouring blanket bog.

The Shell subsidiary, Enterprise Energy Ireland, which is the main developer of Corrib, has been in extensive consultation in north Mayo since the ruling.

However, it is expected that it will be some weeks before it decides formally on resubmitting an application for a terminal in consultation with its partners.

Enterprise Energy Ireland (EEI) hosted a visit yesterday by the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources, Mr Ahern, to the Dooish exploration well some 125 km off the Donegal coast.

In a statement issued to mark the visit, the Minister said that the Government would press ahead with plans to enlarge Ireland's offshore exploration field, as was signalled during the lifetime of the last government.