Objections to Lough Derg scheme

A RECORD number of objections for a tourism-related development on Lough Derg have been lodged against plans to construct a €60 million marina scheme in Ballina.

Figures provided by North Tipperary County Council show that over 150 people, along with the Shannon Regional Fisheries Board and An Taisce, have lodged objections against the contentious proposal overlooking the lake.

Last month, Adrian Lannon and David Lehane lodged plans to build 90 residential units in six blocks, 13 commercial units, a restaurant and 236 boat berths on its riverside site at Derg Marina, Cullenagh, Ballina. If successful, the plan will contribute €6 million annually to the local economy, creating 120 jobs over the two-year construction phase and 70 jobs on completion.

A spokesman for the Ballina Marina Action Group, Joe Cahalane, said yesterday that “the large number of objections is a reflection of the strength of feeling and resistance to the development”. In the fisheries board’s objection, chief executive Eamon Cusack said the board “cannot recommend that this development should go ahead until the infrastructure is actually in place”.

Pointing out that the area is an extremely important commercial and recreational fishery, Mr Cusack said: “ . . . this intensification of the site will create an undesirable precedent and lead to even further development in the immediate area which will have knock-on effects on the fisheries habitat.”

In a separate objection, An Taisce state that “the scale of residential development proposed is out of proportion with the site and land use which is a marina”.

In another submission, the Killaloe Sailing Club claim “that the proposed development by virtue of its residential and commercial mix is unsuited to its location and the integrated tourism designation”.

In a comprehensive objection, the Ballina action group claim that the plan “is an unacceptable over-development of a restricted and sensitive site. The quantum of development proposed is excessive by every means of calculation outlined in national guidelines and urban design best practice”.

The group claims that the “current proposal is for a large scale urban residential development with a retail component. The marina/tourism component is ancillary to this objective”.

The Department of the Environment points out that the development is located within the Lough Derg Natural Heritage Area and states that planning should only be granted if there is capacity in the public sewage system plant at Ballina.

A decision is due next month.