Climate Change, Environment, Strategic Environmental Assessment, Rural Housing Policy

Uimhir Thagarta Uathúil: 
WM-C1-27
Stádas: 
Submitted
Údar: 
Friends of the Irish Environment
Líon na ndoiciméad faoi cheangal: 
0
Teorainneacha Gafa ar an léarscáil: 
Níl
Údar: 
Friends of the Irish Environment

Litir Chumhdaigh

Friends of the Irish Environment

Tuairimí

Submission from Friends of Irish Environment re: Climate Action and Legal Requirements

As the Planning Authority will be aware, Section 15 of the Climate Action & Low Carbon Development Act 2015 and Section 10(2)(n) of the Planning & Development Act 2000 (as amended) obliges the policies and objectives of the Draft Westmeath County Development Plan (WMCDP) 2021 – 2027 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 40% by 2030, compared with 1990 levels, in line with the headline target as set out in the National Mitigation Plan 2017 and the National Transition Objective.

The objectives in the Chapter 11 which seek to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are welcome. However, in the accompanying Strategic Environmental Assessment, the Strategic Environmental Objective (SEO) in respect of ‘Climatic Factors’ seek only to ‘minimise’ emissions (p.55). This requires to be amended in accordance with national law and policy which requires a sustained and rapid reduction of emissions. This change may necessitate a fundamental review of the SEA, including in respect of the alternatives considered.

Rural Housing Policy

Section 9.4 of the  Draft Plan make a distinction between ‘rural areas under strong urban influence’ and ‘structurally weak rural areas’ outside these catchments. It is proposed to continue to regulate housing demand by reference to specific ‘local housing need’ criteria as set out in the Sustainable Rural Housing Guidelines for Planning Authorities 2005.

Further to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) Judgement in the, so called, ‘Flemish Case’, the use of  ‘bloodline’ criteria which preferences certain categories of applicant in obtaining planning permission are discriminatory and unlawful under EU law, specifically Article 43 of the EU Treaty on the freedom of movement of citizens. In 2007, the European Commission issued infringement proceedings against Ireland in respect of this matter and in 2017 the Commission revived these proceedings due to lack of progress.

We therefore recommend that Section 9.4 of the Draft Plan be removed in its entirety and replaced with a revised policy which obliges that applicants for permission in the open countryside must have genuine and demonstrated rurally-generated occupational or employment needs which specifically necessitates a ‘one-off’ dwelling in the countryside prior to being granted panning permission.

Failure to amend rural settlement policies would open up the Draft Plan to the possibility of legal challenge.

It is simply folly to have a policy which facilitates dispersed housing development against the background context of a climate and energy crisis. Such haphazard development does not support and revitalise fragile rural communities but instead hastens their decline. Such development demand should be directed first and foremost to serviced sites in rural nodes.

SEA Monitoring

Article 17 of the SEA Regulations 2004 (S.I. No. 435/2004) require the Planning Authority to monitor the significant environmental effects of the implementation of the Draft WMCDP in order to identify, at an early stage, any unforeseen adverse effects and to facilitate appropriate remedial action. The SEA monitoring measures in respect of climate change include a target to: “To minimise emissions of greenhouse gasses.” (p.55). This target to minimise emissions is again contrary to national legislation which explicitly requires that emissions be reduced.  It is simply not open to the Planning Authority to proceed with the current development strategy in the absence of SEO in respect of climate change that requires emissions to be reduced.

The proposed monitoring falls also short of the standard imposed by the SEA Directive. There is no reference to the results of the monitoring of the implementation of the previous development plan or to how the results of that monitoring have been taken into account during the review of the plan

Faisnéis

Uimhir Thagarta Uathúil: 
WM-C1-27
Stádas: 
Submitted
Líon na ndoiciméad faoi cheangal: 
0
Teorainneacha Gafa ar an léarscáil: 
Níl