Denis Naughten
Question:208 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the grounds for an appeal (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10167/04]
View answerWednesday, 31 March 2004
Questions (208)
Written answers
Under the Planning and Development Regulations 2001, planning authorities are obliged to notify certain prescribed bodies of planning applications received by them. My Department is prescribed as a statutory consultee on any proposed developments which may have an impact on the built or natural heritage.
On receipt of the original planning application, my Department wrote to Roscommon County Council in October 2003 recommending that permission for the proposed development should not be granted because the proposed development is in the immediate vicinity of one of the most important archaeological sites in the country — Rathcroghan — and the proposed development site is located within the area of constraint of a recorded monument and immediately adjacent to a registered monument, as published in the register of historic monuments. Accordingly, it was considered that the proposed development would result in disturbance of significant archaeological features and the development also represented an unacceptable visual impact on this internationally important site.
Roscommon County Council granted permission for the development in February 2004 and for the reasons already specified, it was decided that this decision should be appealed to An Bord Pleanála. An appeal was lodged with the board in March 2004.