‘Too many permissions given’ for one-off rural houses

TOO many one-off rural houses are getting planning permission on sites unable to deal with the sewage that would be generated by the occupants, the country’s leading planning officials have warned.

An Bord Pleanála, the planning appeals board, said some local authorities granted permission without insisting on soil drainage tests that would show whether the land could sustain a septic tank or if the toilets were likely to pollute the groundwater used for drinking.

“Even where they the results are received, they [local authorities] do not seem to be making a proper assessment of the tests. We regard this as highly unsatisfactory,” said the board’s chairman John O’Connor.