This article is from page 13 of the 2012-02-21 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 13 JPG
EAST Clare farmers and landowners, whose land will be subject to Compulsory Purchase Orders to facilitate the construction of the longawaited Killaloe Bypass, received letters from Clare County Council last week informing them which parts of their land will be affected.
The Killaloe Bypass has been identified as a Strategic Infrastructure Development, which means that planning for the development does not need to go through the local planning process with Clare County Council but instead go straight to An Bord Pleanála. Clare County Council last week lodged two documents with An Bord Pleanála, in relation to the Compulsory Purchase Orders and the Environment Impact Statement for the project.
“Any submission made to An Bord Pleanála will be very carefully considered. Ultimately, it is Clare County Council’s objective to achieve development of a high-quality road scheme in a manner that will address any concerns they may have as effectively as possible,” said Barry Keating from the Transportation Sector of Clare County Council.
“It will not be possible for Clare County Council or Roughan and O’Donovan, Consulting Engineers, to engage with the public in respect of this project during the course of the presently ongoing formal public consultation process. This is to ensure that everyone affected by the project is treated equitably and to protect the integrity of the process.”
The public consultation process finishes on March 30 of this year after which time An Bord Pleanála will make the final judgement on the future development of the bypass.
“It is most important that the views and concerns of all landowners in relation to the proposed road scheme are submitted in writing to An Bord Pleanála in the manner outlined in the correspondence they would have received recently by the specified closing date,” continued Mr Keating.
“Each individual landowner and occupier affected by the scheme received a letter and a map and schedule dated Monday, February 6, indicating the portion of their land and property associated with the aforementioned CPO.”
Further correspondence clarifying Clare County Council’s role during the current statutory public consultation process was issued on Tuesday, February 14.
Information on the Killaloe Bypass, including the Environmental Impact Statement and Natural Impact Statement, are currently available to to be viewed at www.clarecoco.ie.