Councillor claims zoning is ‘for birds, not people’

A SENIOR member of Clare County Council said yesterday that “west Clare seems to be for the birds and not for the people”.

Fianna Fáil Cllr PJ Kelly was responding to planners stating that areas zoned for housing in the draft west Clare Local Area Plan should not proceed due to the negative impacts on EU protected birds in the area.

The council is currently accepting public submissions on the draft plan and in a report on how the zonings will impact on designated EU protected sites, the planners express concerns on multiple sites zoned by councillors for housing.