Bid to fill in old quarry in Limerick is rejected by planners
Application was to have the land made ready for agricultural use
A BID to fill in a former quarry to make it usable for agricultural land has been rejected by planners.
Developers bid to fill a former pit with topsoil, subsoil, stone and inorganic construction material to raise the level of the land, located off Newport Road near Castleconnell.
This was being proposed in order to extend the land for a neighbouring farmer.
But there were two objectors - one environmentalist from west Cork and local Green Party councillor Sean Hartigan.
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He warned against the ecological damage which could be done to the land.
Speaking to Limerick Live, he said: “The land has reverted to nature. It’s now scrub and pond. It provided a lot of habitat. There are certainly otters and barn owls in the area. There are ravens and possibly peregrine falcons nesting there.”
Cllr Hartigan admitted he would be concerned about what could be in the materials which would have filled up the former quarry.
“We are in a biodiversity emergency. We need to do all we can to protect what little nature we have in this country. People are not aware that native species we are very familiar with are on the verge of extinction, due to loss of habitat,” he said.
An agent for the applicant - who declined to comment further when contacted - provided a natura impact statement which outlined his view that “habitat and species fragmentation are unlikely to occur from the development.”