Tara campaigners promise new High Court action

Campaigners opposed to the routing of the M3 motorway near the Hill of Tara today vowed to launch another High Court action to halt the road works.

TaraWatch said the European Commission’s decision to take the Government to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) over the construction project signalled a green light for a renewed legal offensive at home.

Vincent Salafia, spokesman for the campaigners, said they will seek an interlocutory injunction on the works at the Lismullen archaeological site until the outcome of the EC action is decided.

“Now that the EC has unequivocally put their money where their mouth is, and are going to court on this, it really does give us the green light,” he said.

He said individuals linked to TaraWatch will lodge papers with the High Court in Dublin on the basis that ex-Minister for the Environment Dick Roche’s decision to proceed with construction and the ongoing works is contrary to EU law.

“The action has to go in before Lismullen is gone,” he said. “We estimate there’s about a few months of excavation left but obviously we don’t want to it to proceed that far because when the excavation ends there’ll be nothing left at all.

“It’s becoming very critical that something has to be done and has to be done in the next couple of weeks.”

Mr Salafia refused to name the individuals who will take the legal action, claiming it would detract from their ongoing demonstrations.

“We are calling on the Government to take action now,” he said.

“We believe the battle is won, legally and in the public minds and on every front.

“This really is a defining moment for the coalition, the EU is taking them to court. They cannot deny now that this is a serious problem.”

The EC has accused the Government of contravening the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive which demands a proper investigation of the environmental impact of major public or private projects.

It says the Government did not carry out an assessment on the significance of the national monument at Lismullen before deciding to remove it.

EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said: “I am disappointed that Ireland has not accepted the Commission view that improvements are needed in its legislation on impact assessments in order to better safeguard and give the public more say in decisions affecting its rich archaeological heritage, and to better guarantee that industrial projects will be comprehensively assessed.”

It could take weeks to months before the EC case is fully prepared and lodged with the ECJ for hearing.

Ciaran Cuffe, The Green Party’s Law Reform spokesman, and party colleague of present Minister for the Environment John Gormley, said he welcomed the European intervention.

“All of the legal advice available to Minister Gormley since taking office has been that Irish law does not provide any means for him to affect or change the decisions on the routing of the M3 made by the previous government,” he said.

“We urgently need a decision from the ECJ on the question of further environmental impact assessment when discoveries of major archaeological or heritage value are made once a major construction project has commenced.”