Sir, - It was with disbelief that I read in a local Co Waterford paper about the possibility of the erection of a wind-farm on the slopes of our beautiful Knockmealdown mountains.
I am a business director from Bosnia-Herzegovina married to a lady of Irish descent. Our country has been devastated and ruined by war and by years of communism, so it is a shock to discover that in an advanced and democratic country such as yours, unharmed by recent conflict or totalitarianism, you could envisage allowing the disfigurement of an area of such outstanding beauty - against the wishes of the vast majority of the local population, it appears.
The shock deepened upon being told that the project is a private one, proposed and initiated by one of the largest absentee landowners in the area, who lives in Brussels. The proposed development is a purely private affair in a public domain which would destroy the fragile eco-system for ever.
I saw for myself this summer, in Co Antrim and in Anglesey, North Wales, the negative impact wind farms have on the environment, and the damage to inhabitants' quality of life. Natural beauty is at a premium in today's increasingly industrialised and urban world. Its very soul should not be sold to enrich the favoured few at the expense of the area's inhabitants and numerous visitors from around the globe, who come to enjoy the tranquillity and outstanding beauty of such a pristine landscape.
I feel sure that, all past, present, and future visitors would share my concern, and wish to encourage the people to protect the God-given heritage of their children and their children's children. As a frequent guest in your country, I would not normally protest, but I feel that perhaps not everyone is aware of this threat. My plea is that democracy in your land be given the chance to triumph this time over the self-serving power of negative capitalism, and that the Government act to prevent the loss of one of the jewels in the crown of Ireland's heritage. - Yours, etc.,
Bernard Boras, Medjugorje, Bosnia-Herzegovina.