Bruckless wind turbine refused by An Bord Pleanála

The construction of wind turbine in Bruckless has been refused permission by An Bord Pleanála.

Protricity Limited appealed a decision made by Donegal County Council in August 2022 to refuse permission, but the planning authority has upheld the initial ruling.

The company sought permission for the construction of a turbine with a tip height of 150m and with an operational lifespan of 30 years. They also sought permission for the construction of a control building, upgrading of the site entrance, a site access road of 195m and underground cabling at Multins, Buckless.

An Bord Pleanála ruled that the proposed location was on a site designated in an area where wind energy development is not normally permissible as defined in the County Donegal Development Plan 2018-2024.

“The proposed development would, therefore, materially contravene the provisions of the development plan and would be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area,” the decision reads.

The planning authority added that the development ‘would be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area’.

The Board noted the totality of the documentation on file, including two inspector reports. The applicant acknowledged in an appeal submission in September of last year that the wind turbine ‘is in an area designated as not normally permissible’.

An Bord Pleanála said: “The Board considered the full grounds and reasons as set out in the first party appeal document and determined nevertheless that the overarching policy context in terms of location was a key determinant at the time of the decision of the planning authority and remained so at the time of the Board's decision.”

In its initial decision, Donegal County Council said the proposed development was located outside of an area ‘open to consideration’ and located within ten times the tip height of the proposed turbine to residential properties.

The Council added at the time that the proposed development had the potential ‘to result in an unwelcome visual intrusion in the upland rural area’, given the scale of the turbine ‘in the context of the open and unspoilt nature of the receiving environment’.