High Court dismisses challenge against plans for new wind farm in south east Clare

The High Court has dismissed objectors' judicial review challenge against the decision to grant permission for a new wind farm on lands in south east Clare.

Over 300 people from the area lodged objections against the Fahy Beg wind farm proposal and, in May 2023,  Clare County Council refused planning permission to RWE Renewables Ireland Ltd for the 38.4 MW wind-farm on lands which are located 1.5km from Bridgetown and 3.5km from O’Briensbridge.

As part of the proposal, the wind-farm developers have indicated they will establish a Community Benefit Fund which will distribute up to €3.12m over the first 15 years of the wind farm.

Documents lodged with the application state that the provision of this fund “will have a significant long-term, positive effect on the socio-economic profile of the study area and wider area”.

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The local authority refused permission - citing five grounds.

The reasons given included concerns that the planned wind farm would depreciate the price of property as it would be visually over-bearing on those properties.

However, RWE Renewables Ireland appealed the refusal to An Bord Pleanala which, in March 2024, overturned the Council's decision and granted permission.

In response, the Fahy Beg wind farm opposition group and Sean Conway launched judicial review proceedings in the High Court seeking to have the appeals board decision quashed.

However, Mr Justice Richard Humphreys - who presides over the Planning and Environment Division of the High Court - has dismissed all grounds of the judicial review challenge.

The applicants claimed the decision (to grant permission) should be quashed as the planned wind farm would materially contravene the development plan due to the loss of part of Ballymoloney Woods.

Mr Justice Humphreys stated that on the basis of the applicants’ analysis, the felling of any tree necessarily constitutes a material contravention of the development plan.

Mr Justice Humphreys said that this approach represented an “excessively literalist and absolutist interpretation” of development plan objectives.

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In his written judgment, he stated that the application failed to engage with the specifics of the individual trees which are actually being felled, pointing 0.4 of a hectare or 0.2% of the total amount of long established woodland is being removed.

He said: “There is no absolute prohibition on the removal of trees, contrary to the applicants’ complaints, and a reasonably informed reader would not read such a preclusion into the development plan when same is read objectively and holistically.”

Mr Justice Humphreys also dismissed the objectors’ claim that planning permission should be quashed due to the impact that the wind farm would have on property prices in the area.

He said that there is no substantive evidence presented that would conclusively indicate a depreciation in property values directly attributable to the wind farm's presence at this particular location. Mr Justice Humphreys made no order in relation to costs.

When complete, the wind farm will feature eight turbines and will be 579 feet in height.