Waterford apathy, Kilkenny culpability
Are you receiving? You both pretend to want us but in the meantime we are being raped by both.
Tipperary County Council insisted on an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) being presented by the Ronan family when they wanted to build a state-of-the-art rendering plant and incinerator in Rosegreen.
This was considered necessary by the council because of the type of plant envisaged. That project failed to come to fruition because of the sustained resistance of the community.
In Ferrybank, however, the picture is different. The 15-year-old rendering plant called Waterford Proteins sought a change of licence to allow them to render BSE-infected animals.
We pointed out in our submissions that an EIS was necessary for this change as, indeed, did the veterinary department in their own office, but we were ignored. This point was confirmed by the Environment Ministry in Brussels. We gave this information to the Kilkenny County Council.
Nevertheless, they granted permission for a thermal oxidiser, which would burn off the smell but only add to the health hazards for the community.
Does the public know that when there is an appeal to An Bord Plenala, the council that gave the original permission appears to have the liberty to exclude what they like from the file? In this case the letters from Europe were withheld. Why? How can An Bord Plenala give an authoritative decision when they don’t have the full facts?
Help! Someone, anyone. A beautiful place in the curve of the River Suir is being made the waste repository of Ireland by the county council with the collusion of the apathy of Waterford.
Afra Cronin,
Hazelwood,
Christendom,
Ferrybank,
Waterford
