Appeal lodged against concrete plant in Tipperary
Planning permission granted by Tipperary County Council for a ready-mixed concrete plant outside Nenagh has been appealed to An Coimisiún Pleanála.
Seamus Ryan Sand and Gravel Ltd was granted permission by the local authority for the development of ready-mixed concrete plant, with hard and soft landscaping and all other site excavation, infrastructural and site development works above and below ground on a site at Ballybeg, Toomevara.
An appeal has been made to An Coimisiún Pleanála against the grant of planning permission, on environmental, archeological, traffic, noise and policy grounds.
According to the appeal, lodged by Thomas Duggan, the granted planning permission represents a “material change” to the use of the site, and would lead to increase heavy goods traffic, noise and air pollution in the area.
“Without rigorous dust suppression, screening and monitoring, sensitive receptors – such as local residences, farms and schools – could suffer from deteriorated air quality,” the appeal said.
Mr Duggan added that the proposed plant sits near the Ollatrim River, and raises concerns about cement dust entering the river, which feeds into the north Tipperary water supply.
Mr Duggan also says in this appeal that the plant would lead to an increase in traffic of heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) on narrow rural roads in the area.
"Local families and schoolchildren share these roads, and the combination of increased HGVs, restricted visibility and lane widths presents a real danger,” Mr Duggan’s appeal states.
Concerns are also raised about the hours of operation of the proposed facility, with it operating from 7am to 6.30pm Monday to Friday, and 8am to 4pm on Sundays, as well as up to 40 out-of-hours occasions throughout the year.
"Loud batching operations, honking trucks, reversing alarms and diesel engines and HGVs will destroy the rural tranquility and peace of the countryside,” the appeal states.