The battle between anti-mast campaigners and mobile phone companies continues in the north-west - recent weeks have seen a chainsaw attack, "pillars of society" in court on charges of coercion, and council orders that unauthorised masts be removed.
On Sligo County Council the Labour Party is arguing for an amendment to the county development plan to prevent masts being put up within a kilometre of residential areas, schools or hospitals.
In Carrick-on-Shannon court this week, two men and a woman described as "pillars of society" were given the Probation Act on a coercion charge arising out of a fracas with an Esat Digifone crew repairing a mast in the town last February.
The court appearance of a senior civil servant, a member of the chamber of commerce and a former county footballer shows how the issue has raised strong feelings among the most unlikely protesters.
Attempts by Esat Digifone recently to erect masts in three locations in Co Sligo without the necessary planning permission - saying they believed the type of structure was exempt - have particularly outraged local communities.
"It is very clear in respect of these three developments that Esat Digifone have ridden a coach and four through the Planning Act in the hope that they would get the co-operation of the local authorities, and that the public would not object," Mr Declan Bree, a Labour Party councillor said.
After complaints and protests, and some debate in the local authorities on whether the structures were exempt, Esat Digifone was ordered to remove all three structures, at Farranacardy in Sligo town, Ballina scarrow in Ballymote and Ballykilcash in Dromore West.
Some locals decided they would do the job themselves in Dromore West, however, and took a chainsaw to the nine-metre wooden pole three weeks ago. An Esat Digifone spokesman, accepting that the pole had been put up without permission, complained that people were taking the law into their own hands. Labour and Sinn Fein councillors are demanding that the local authorities take legal action against Esat Digifone over the unauthorised masts.
Meanwhile, Eircell also has had problems to contend with, as planning applications to erect masts at Strandhill, Collooney and Gurteen were deemed invalid by the council and face strong local opposition.
Mr Tim Mulcahy, an anti-mast campaigner from Bally mote, said people were feeling "pure frustration" at seeing telecommunications companies erecting "monstrosities" while people were subjected to the most stringent planning rules when building or modifying houses.
He is not totally opposed to masts, but wants them located away from residential areas. "The issue now is the attitude of Esat Digifone towards the planning authorities and the problem of enforcement. These things go up and then letters go back and forth but nothing happens. We just want a level playing pitch and planning procedures to be followed," Mr Mulcahy said.
Mobile phone companies were failing to share masts as laid down in Government regulations, he said. With a third mobile phone operator about to come into the picture, he said the situation would arise where an area that could be served with one mast would have three.
The apparent reluctance of Esat Digifone and Eircell to share masts is also cited by protesters in Collooney. Two years ago locals campaigned unsuccessfully against an Esat mast being erected at the local Garda station.
Ms Mary Leydon said they were now even more determined to oppose an application by Eircell to erect another mast in the centre of the town. "This mast will be even closer to a school than the first one. It just doesn't make sense. They could put them a mile away and still get coverage," she said.
A number of high-profile anti-mast campaigns appear to have been successful. In Kerrykeel in Co Donegal, where locals clashed with a large force of gardai more than a year ago, Esat has not returned to try to erect antennae on the mast. In nearby Loughagannon campaigners are also opposing an Esat mast.
In Ballinamore, Co Leitrim, after nearly two years of protests and legal wrangles between locals and Eircell, a stalemate exists.
"Our resistance is as firm as ever, and there are a number of avenues still open to us," said Mr John Toolan of Ballinamore Radiation and Information Network (Brain).
All the campaigners cite 1996 Government guidelines, which state that "only as a last resort should masts be erected in built-up areas". Mr Bree says his amendment to the Sligo development plan is in line with these guidelines. Although voted down a number of times by Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, he intends to table it again, saying he believes public pressure will eventually force the other councillors to support it.
Sinn Fein has also taken an anti-mast stance in the corporation and council. Mr Sean MacManus, a councillor, said it would continue to oppose them until such time as health risks were fully established. He accepts that infrastructure is needed in the west, but says masts could be sited away from residential areas in places such as forests where they don't blight the landscape. "These big companies are just looking for the easiest and cheapest way so as to maximise profits," he said.
Both Eircell and Esat Digifone claim the campaigners are misreading the clause in the guidelines saying masts should be erected in built-up areas "only as a last resort". Ms Olivia Dobbs of Eircell said: "This is on visual grounds and not on health grounds. It follows a section saying antennae should be erected on existing buildings where possible." She said every effort was being made to give people as much information as possible to reassure them about health concerns.
A spokesman for Esat Digifone said that for each of the campaign groups there was "a vast army" of customers demanding better coverage. Because people now wanted coverage inside buildings, the company has had to "more than double" the number of masts planned in its network.
While it had intended to have 250 antennae, either on masts or on existing buildings, there were now more than 500, a third of them in Dublin. (Eircell has 1,000 base stations around the State.)
The Esat spokesman said he believed there was a greater acceptance of mobile phones and masts now than four or five years ago.