This article is from page 55 of the 2010-01-05 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 55 JPG
CLARE County Council has told Doonbeg Golf Club that it has con- cerns over the fact that its scaled down €2 million coastal protection plan may lead to other parts of the coastline adjoining the site becom- ing noticeably eroded.
The council concerns are high- lighted in a raft of new information sought by the planning authority about the golf club proposal.
The club is seeking approval for a protection plan for the most vulner- able sections of dune fronting the sixth tee and the fifth, 13th and 14th greens on the golf course.
A previous 2003 proposal was turned down by An Bord Pleanala and the golf club has now told the
council that if it does nothing, the dune system will be further eroded and this would be detrimental to the club’s viability.
The application states that “essen- tial parts of Doonbeg golf course re- main at high risk from severe coastal erosion during extreme storm events with a combined high waves and storm surge’.
Putting the plan on hold, the coun- cil stated, ““There are concerns that proposal may lead to a situation whereby other parts of the adjoin- ing coastline may become noticeably eroded, leading to a situation where further coastal protection works may be needed.”
The council has invited the golf club to submit any proposals it may have for further coastal management
work and has asked why a revised layout of the course hasn’t been ex- plored as an alternative erosion man- agement measure.
The council has also taken into account a submission from the De- partment of the Environment which states that the appropriate assessment screening does not take into consid- eration the potential effects of the development on the the Mid-Clare coast Special Protection Area (SPA) and its conservation objectives.
The department pointed out that the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) lodged with the application states that the proposal is unlikely to have significant effects on Carrow- more Dunes Special Area of Conser- vation (SAC).
“In reaching this conclusion, there
is no reference to the potential ef- fects on other plans and projects, in- cluding the existing golf course and associated developments and there 1s no reference to any impacts on the SPA and its conservation objectives.
“The impacts of reconfiguring parts of the golf course to facilitate the coastal protection works and the works involved, are not considered with respect to potential impacts on the SAC in particular and on habi- tats, flora and fauna in general,” the department submission concluded.
A decision is expected on the plan later in 2010.