This article is from page 10 of the 2014-02-18 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 10 JPG
AN ENVIRONMENTALIST has maintained that a windfarm, which is currently part of a planning application to Clare County Council, will be visible from Doonbeg Golf Course.
Friends of the Irish Environment director Tony Lowes, who in 2000 held up the construction of the course when he raised concerns in the high court about the protection of the microscopic snail Vertigo Angustior, told a Scottish newspaper that he now wants new owner Donald Trump to help back a campaign against the proposed nine-turbine wind farm.
The billionaire businessman reportedly ceased plans to build a second luxury golf course in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, following a failed legal battle to stop the construction of an 11-turbine windfarm off the Scottish coast.
Last week West Clare Coastal Windpower lodged plans for the nine 126-metre wind turbines at Carrowmore South, Einagh and Shragh, two kilometres south of Doonbeg village.
The company’s previous plan for an “industrial scale” € 200 million windfarm at the same location was refused by an Bord Pleanála last July.
Local business people said this week that they were taking a “neutral stance” on the issue, and that the previous application went through the process without any major concern locally.
Mr Lowes is reported as saying he believes people will listen to Mr Trump rather than the environmentalists on the issue.
Asked about the Trump Organisation getting involved in any such issues locally, executive vice president Eric Trump said it was not afraid of taking on important issues.
“Maybe it is too early, but we have never been afraid to tackle important issues time and time again, and we have never been afraid to take on important issues,” she told The Clare People .
“We are not afraid to take on the fight for the betterment of the community and quite frankly often times the community looks to us to lean on, to help them and for that leadership and for the resources to do so.”