Call for CPO to be 'taken off the table' for Mayo Greenway rejected by TII

More than a hundred years on from The Land War, the question of who owns the land continues to provoke strong reactions in this country and certainly in this county.

The question of how to balance private property rights with the common good was the subject of discussion for the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport in Committee Room 4 of Leinster House this morning.

Before a packed public gallery, the CEO of Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), Lorcan O'Connor, pushed back against calls for the use of Compulsory Purchase Orders (CPO) to be removed from the policy options when planning Greenways in Ireland.

Mayo Deputy Rose Conway Walsh called for CPO to be 'taken off the table' as “it would force people into proper consultation.”

The Erris-based TD described the current quality of consultation in Mayo as “disrespectful to my constituents and to the landowners that are involved here. There's property rights and constitutional rights to protect people and what's happening here is totally wrong.”

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Her calls echoed earlier remarks from the National Greenway Action Association who has also called for the removal of CPO powers permanently from all Greenway developments.

In response, the CEO of TII acknowledged that based on the evidence from the National Greenway Action Association that the consultation code “is not being implemented in the way in which it was envisaged.”

He told the Committee that an annual review of the process will take place in the next few weeks and he will ensure it is a “thorough review.”

Rejecting calls to take CPO off the table, he stated that it “is necessary in certain circumstances to protect the taxpayer, but only as a very last resort and in exceptional circumstances.”

Looking ahead, he said that “the vast majority of Greenways that we're looking at into the future will involve small parcels of private land, in all likelihood, for those Greenways to actually be delivered.”

Landowners demand future Greenways restricted to public land

Mayo woman Lucy Fabby was one of three representatives from the National Greenway Action Association group to speak before the committee during the morning session.

The group called for the suspension of all current Greenway projects involving private property until a new framework is in place and for future Greenway projects to be restricted to “public land only, except where a property owner freely consents without pressure or threat.”

They also called for the establishment of an oversight mechanism of TII and all county councils involved in Greenway delivery.

The group also proposed a national audit on mental health for landowners affected by Greenways. They concluded by stating that “until these reforms are made, there can be no access to or no mapping and no surveying on private land.”

The IFA 'totally opposed' to CPOs

Paul O'Brien, speaking on behalf of the Irish Farmers Association, told the committee that the current approach to Greenways is “causing significant anxiety and hardship for farm families whose livelihoods depend on those lands.”

He went on to say that Greenway projects are not essential public infrastructure like roads or utilities.

He also warned of the impact of Greenways cutting through a working farm. He said doing so could disrupt create safety risks and undermine the longterm viability of farm enterprises.

When pushed by Fine Gael Senator Mark Duffy for examples of safety risks or any data to support these claims, the IFA representative conceded he didn't have any data but had received some calls about littering and antisocial behaviour with people drinking.

The Ballina-based politician asked for an update on the Ballina-Mount Falcon-Foxford Greenway, which he says needs to be pursued as it a huge opportunity to “connect thousands of people and businesses and be positive for tourism and active travel.”

After being told by TII that the project hadn't got a grant this year, Senator Duffy said that “there's a feeling in North Mayo that there's been a lot investment in the Great Western Greenway, but very little investment in the north of the county.”

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme