THE Government’s action in taking the side of landowners and vested interests in planning legislation could cost the country several million euro in fines, warned An Taisce.
The European Commission announced it is taking the unusual step of taking the country to the European Court for the second time to collect fines because the Government has failed to adequately protect the natural environment and archeological heritage.
The court ruled two years ago that EU environmental legislation the country first signed up to 25 years ago has not been properly introduced into national law.
But despite negotiations with the commission the Government has failed to make the necessary changes.
Now for the first time, the commission is taking Ireland back to the court to demand fines of €4,000 a day retrospective to November 2008 and €33,000 a day for every day after the second ruling that the measures are not introduced.
EU environment spokesman Joe Hennon said that the total fine could be in the region of €3.5 million since it would take about two years for the new case to come to court.
An Taisce, the national heritage body, welcomed the commission’s decision and said there was untold damage being done to the country’s bogs and other sensitive sites because of the Government’s attitude.
"Ireland has the worst record in the EU for failing to protect the environment," said An Taisce’s heritage officer Ian Lumley.
He said this is a consequence of the Government being swayed by the land ownership lobby and taking the side of vested interests rather than of the public.
"They take an exploitative attitude towards the land and protect private interests against the public interest."
They had examples of a farmer pretending he was building a farm road in the Boyne valley when, in fact, he was extracting rocks from a quarry he had created along the river. He was able to do this because the Government exempted developments under the heading of agricultural improvements or farm access from having to seek planning permission, said Mr Lumley.
The court found that the thresholds the Government set for undertaking environmental impact assessments for projects such as restructuring rural landholdings and water management projects for irrigation or land drainage were too high.
"This has led to loss of wetlands and other habitats and the destruction of archaeological remains without any environmental impact assessments ever being required," said Mr Hennon.
The court is expected to rule before Easter on another similar case against Ireland over the destruction of archaeological sites around Tara by the building of the M3 motorway.
The Departments of the Environment and Agriculture said they were developing a new response to the 2008 judgment and will consult with the commission in the next few weeks.
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
This appeared in the printed version of the Irish Examiner Thursday, February 17, 2011
