Former Undertone urges wind farm opponents to keep one eye on local elections

Former rock star and current high-profile environmental campaigner, Fergal Sharkey, has urged environmental groups throughout Donegal to be mindful of next year's local and European elections when they speak to their local politicians about regulating planning decisions that impact the countryside. 

He met the Save the Gweebarra group last week while on a trip to his native Derry and pledged his continuing support for their campaign to prevent the development of wind farms in the area. The former Undertones lead singer now resides in England where is the vocal frontman for the campaign to highlight the scandal of sewage in Britain’s inland and coastal waters.

The proposed wind farm developments have a long and chequered history in this part of West Donegal. Matters were already controversial and have given rise to some tempestuous debates at Donegal County Council level, particularly since the infamous mudslide incident at Meenbog outside Ballybofey three years ago next month.

Between Glenties and Dungloe there are currently four planning applications associated with industrial wind turbines at various stages in the planning process with An Bord Pleanála in Dublin.

In February 2021 a company called Cuilfeach Teoranta submitted a planning application to An Bord Pleanála for eight industrial wind turbines, a substation and grid connection at Graffy and ten other townlands around Glenties but subsequently withdrew that planning application in July, 2021.

In January 2022 Cuilfeach Teoranta again applied to An Bord Pleanála for permission for a wind farm but no decision is yet forthcoming on planning file No. 312385.

Many people around Leitirmacaward say the N56 was straightened to get industrial wind turbines into the Rosses and the roadworks were no sooner finished than Donegal County Council received a planning application for a 100m high wind measuring mast outside Dungloe. The council refused permission but the applicant appealed to An Bord Pleanála who, late last year, granted permission for a mast and red light at Meenlecknalore, Crovehy, Dungloe overlooking Traeannagh Bay.

In October 2022 Donegal County Council refused permission for three 150m high wind turbines at the existing nine-turbine Maas Windfarm in the West of Ardara Maas Special Area of Conservation where a turbine fell in 2015.

The applicants, Maas Windfarm Holdings, appealed to An Bord Pleanála and on September 18 this year the planning board went against their own Inspector who had recommended a refusal and they granted planning permission for one 150m wind turbine and a substation to extend the existing windfarm. 

The only recourse people now have is to seek to take a judicial review in the High Court before November 18.

A photo montage that shows what the proposed Ørsted wind farm development would look like as one looked at it from Gweebarra Bridge. This montage comes from the developer's own website

In March of this year, Danish State-owned Ørsted together with Coillte and the ESB applied to An Bord Pleanála to erect a second wind mast, a substation and 19 200m high industrial wind turbines on peat bogs and forestry above the  Gweebarra River between Doochary and Gweebarra Bridge under the name Cloghercor Wind Farm Ltd, planning file No. 316025. 

Six hundred and fifty local households signed the Gweebarra Conservation Group's submission on the application to An Bord Pleanála and there were dozens more additional submissions by local families opposing the windfarm plans.

In addition, many nationwide environmental non-governmental organizations (NGOs) wrote submissions opposing a wind farm on the Gweebarra including the Irish Wildlife Trust, the Federation of Irish Salmon and Sea Trout Anglers, the Golden Eagle Trust, the Irish Peatlands Conservation Council and Birdwatch Ireland. 

The board was due to make a decision on the Cloghercor Wind Plant by September 11 but has now declared they will make their decision known by January 11, 2024. 

"They should have rejected this planning application outright," according to Carolyn Robinson of the Gweebarra Conservation Group.

"There is overwhelming opposition to this planning application locally and around Ireland. These plans have been hanging over this community for four years."

Patricia Sharkey, also from the Gweebarra Conservation Group said she also fears for the natural environment in this pristine area.

"These same townlands are being continuously targeted by industrialists who see our area as open to exploitation. We cannot allow any industrial development that threatens our water supplies, our rivers, our wildlife and our homes.

"It is pure madness to permit the excavation of peat bogs to replace them with concrete and steel with all that we now know about the importance of bogs as carbon sinks."

Last week a gathering of environmentalists from across Ulster met in Derry's Guildhall. Save the Gweebarra supporters met with Feargal Sharkey where the former Undertones' singer pledged his continuing support for their campaign and encouraged all the environment groups present to continue to organise as local and general elections are upcoming and politicians must be held accountable for regulating good planning. 

On Sunday last October 8, the Gweebarra Conservation Group partook in a European-wide Hilltop Beacon lighting by people protesting ill-sited industrial wind turbines across the Continent and further afield. 

"Lighting hilltop beacons to warn of danger has long been a tradition in Ireland so we partook in the protest in solidarity with communities across Ireland and Europe from people in the Sami lands to the Canary Islands whose wildlife and way of life is under threat from industrialists," said Ms Sharkey. 

'We in Donegal know how serious that threat is and as we approach the third anniversary of the Meenbog ecological disaster at a wind farm under construction outside Ballybofey it is a timely reminder of how much we could lose under current government plans."