Louth politicians join protest outside Dáil against Greenway CPOs

Members of the Protect Cooley Peninsula group, a campaign opposed to proposed Dundalk-Carlingford Greenway routes through their property in north Louth, joined a national protest today outside the Dáil in Dublin calling for an end to the use of Compulsory Purchase Orders (CPOs) for non essential infrastructure such as greenways and cycleways. 

The protest was also joined by Louth politicians, including Fine Gael TD, Paula Butterly, who spoke at the protest, and Fianna Fáil's Cllr Andrea McKevitt. Cllr McKevitt shared photos of the protest today on social media.

The demonstration, supported by groups from several counties, was a show of unity among communities who have say they have faced uncertainty, lack of transparency, and threats to their property rights under current greenway development processes. 

“We are not against greenways. We welcome initiatives that promote tourism and active travel. But using CPOs to forcibly take private land for non-essential infrastructure is wrong,” said a spokesperson for the National Greenway Action Association. 

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Louth County Council issued an update on its plans for the Dundalk-Carlingford Greenway earlier this week. The latest update to the timelines envisaged for holding Public Consultation No. 3 (Emerging Preferred Route Corridor) are as follows:

• Peer Review – Ongoing
• Letters issued to landowners along the Emerging Preferred Route Corridor – late November
• Presentation to Elected Members – late November
• Public Consultation (PC3) – late November to the end of January 2026
• Design Team engagement with affected landowners – To commence at time of PC3
• Independent Agronomist meetings with affected landowners – To commence at time of PC3​

Louth County Council added that: "Separate letters will be sent, via post, to landowners whose holdings have been identified as being located within the Emerging Preferred Route Corridor and Landowners whose holdings are in close proximity to it, based on Tailte Éireann Land Registry information.

"The Emerging Preferred Route Corridor that will be presented as part of the Public Consultation does not represent the actual width of the proposed greenway development or the lands required to facilitate the development. The corridor simply indicates the area within which a greenway alignment could feasibly be developed.

"Currently, the corridor is approximately 50m in width (although wider in a number of locations due to notable constraints and opportunities) and the proposed greenway will typically be 6-8m in width."