A moratorium on wind farms pending impact reviews would be welcome

The Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Pat Rabbitte, announced last year a moratorium on exploration licences for ‘fracking’ projects in Ireland.

He said that exploration licences would not be given out until the Environmental Protection Agency had published its review of the environmental and health impacts of extracting gas from the ground through hydraulic ‘fracking’.

Strangely, the minister has not introduced a similar moratorium on planning decisions for wind farms. A review of wind-energy guidelines has also commenced and is examining key issues of community concern, such as noise and proximity of wind turbines to family homes.