Mayo builder appeals €87,000 levy for reclamation of agricultural land

A CASTLEBAR-based builder has appealed a decision by Mayo County Council to impose a €87,000 levy as part of planning conditions to re-contour agriculture land.

Gene McConway of Lough Lannagh House, Mountain View, Castlebar was granted planning permission by Mayo County Council to re-contour five hectares of agricultural land at Derrycoosh, Castlebar using up to 165,500 tonnes of imported soil and stones for the consequential benefit to agriculture.

However, one of the planning conditions included a development contribution levy of €87,474 which Mr McConway claims is 'exorbitant' for 'small scale farming activity'.

In the appeal lodged with An Bord Pleanála, Fintan Morrin of The Planning Partnership, on behalf of Mr McConway, stated that while the planning permission is welcomed in principle, the planning authority were treating the development as 'a commercial, rather than an agricultural undertaking'.

He stated that the applicant comes from a farming background and intends to purchase the land and for it to be part of an existing family farm holding in the wider area.

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In the application to Mayo County Council, it was stated that the 'imported clean, uncontaminated soil' will be sourced from 'greenfield construction sites in the wider Castlebar area' associated with the applicant.

Mr Morrin outlined that the proposed development is for the purposes of land reclamation and the applicant does not propose to 'change the use of the land or to create a waste transfer station or infill or other form of deposition site'.

Farming background

“The catalyst for work is to render the lands suitable for productive agricultural use, in keeping with the applicant's farming background and activity, and with the benefit of the applicant's separate business interests in the construction sector.

“The latter should not and does not however undermine the validity of the agricultural improvement of the land in and of itself,” Mr Morrin stated in the appeal.

The subject site which is approximately 5km from Castlebar is described as comprising a 'boggy heath that does not appear to currently be in active agricultural use'.

An environment and planning report prepared for the application stated that a ten year operational term is proposed to carry out the work which will be carried out in four phases. The report stated 'there will be no interference with the existing site soils in that the imported soil will be placed over the existing surface, and graded appropriately to an average depth of approximately 1.8m across the site'.

Mr Morrin stated that the imposition of the levy would render the implementation impossible and stated the planning authority should not be 'levying significant contributions on agricultural development'. He asked the Board of An Bord Pleanála to delete the condition in relation to the development levy.