An Taisce calls on An Bord Pleanala to ensure Outer Bypass built in line with EU Directives

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Written by Brenda Carney

Wednesday, 07 February 2007

The Galway branch of An Taisce has asked An Bord Pleanala to make sure the information supplied by the developer on the proposed N6 Galway City Outer By-Pass (GCOBP) is in line with the EU Directives on Environmental Impact Assessment.

According to An Taisce, the information must include a description of the project with information on the site, design and size and a description of what measures the developer (not An Bord Pleanala) is going to take in order to avoid, reduce and remedy adverse effects.

An Bord Pleanala should also identify and assess the main effects the project is likely to have on the environment, the main alternatives considered and the reasons for those alternatives, An Taisce says.

The environmental effects of every proposal must be taken into account and an environmental impact assessment (EIS) must be done. The assessment will identify, describe, and assess the direct and indirect effects of a project on factors including human beings, fauna, flora, soil, water, air, climate, landscape, material assets and cultural heritage.

An Taisce wants to draw the attention of the Board to areas where the EIS failed to provide enough information to enable the Board to make a decision. They will make these points at the expected Oral Hearing

Part of the chosen GCOBP route will pass through designated High Priority Natura 2000 Habitat areas including Ballindooly Lough, Coolagh Fen, Kentfield, and Bolybeg.

Members of An Taisce have stated the road scheme should only be built if it can be shown that it will not damage delicate natural environments, protected structures, buildings or destroy archaeology. Also this road scheme should only be selected after all other options such as lorry routing, speed reduction measures and investment in public transport, have been considered, it says.

An Taisce says that decisions on new roads should not be taken in isolation; they should further appropriate land use policies and not encourage sprawl.

An Taisce believes if any new road is built, it should be built to the highest standards with appropriate use of tunnelling, careful use of landscape bridges and animal underpasses, low level lighting if at all, quiet road surfacing and minimal use of visually intrusive signing and flyovers.

A spokesperson for An Taisce, Mr Derrick Hambleton, said An Taisce was not against the building of roads "where these can be justified". However, it did have very serious reservations about the outer by-pass because it felt it is more about opening up yet more land for houses and will not solve Galway's traffic problem. "It will just create more urban sprawl, lead to increased greenhouse gas emissions and is not good planning," he said.

Mr Hambleton said the developers - the NRA & Galway City & County Councils - have to justify the need for this road. "Seven or eight families are to lose their homes if these CPOs go through," he said.

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