Donegal County Council to make representation to Tyrone gold mine public inquiry

Donegal Councillors have sought more information regarding a public inquiry into controversial plans for a new gold mine in West Tyrone.

The issue was raised at this week's meeting of the Lifford-Stranorlar Municipal District, as it was revealed that Donegal County Council will be making a representation to the ongoing public inquiry into the Dalradian gold mine.

An inquiry into plans to build the new gold mine near Greencastle, County Tyrone resumed on Monday in Omagh, with it set to last a total of eight weeks.

Mining company Dalradian plans to extract about 100 tonnes of gold, almost 50 tonnes of silver and 15,000 tonnes of copper from the proposed new underground mine, saying that it will create hundreds of jobs in the area and that its "planners and engineers have thought about the long term at every stage of designing the mine."

However, numerous local environmental groups on both sides of the border have raised serious concerns about the potential impact the mining activity could have on water quality in the Sperrins, as well as the River Mourne, the River Foyle, and the River Finn.

Donegal County Council Executive Planner Donna Callaghan said that due to prior concerns raised by council members and other factors, the council had made a submission to the public hearing. However, she said the council would not be offering any direct evidence to it.

"Given previous concerns raised by the members to potential environmental concerns and potential hydrological links between the development in West Tyrone and the River Finn SAC, Planning has made a submission to the Department of Infrastructure for the public hearing, which fulfils its statutory function in regard to any trans-boundary impacts," she said.

"We will not be giving any direct evidence at the public hearing as it's not the decision-making authority on the proposed development."

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In response, Councillor Frank McBrearty put forward a motion asking for councillors to be offered a workshop regarding the authority's submission to the inquiry.

He said that "serious concerns" about the project had been raised to him by a number of local environmental groups.

"I have (heard from) a number of environmental groups that have raised serious concerns about that development in Northern Ireland, and the fact that it's stuck in a public inquiry as well. I have my own concerns about the effects if that issue does get planning permission, on the River Foyle, but particularly the River Finn and the Mourne which meets at the Lifford Bridge," he said.

"I'm not an expert in this field, but environmentalists that I know certainly know the issues that they have been raising concerning this."

"Donegal County Council originally never had any input on this, which they should have had, and that public inquiry should have invited planners and potentially the environmental groups in Donegal who have raised serious concerns with what has actually been proposed in that mining project."

"I'm requesting a workshop for the elected members with Planning, to give us their opinion and what their input is going to be in this, because I have concerns about the issues that have been raised to me about the environmental effects that could happen if that development gets the go-ahead," the councillor said.

"If some of the allegations that are being made by environmentalists are true, then there's a serious problem. These have to be clarified to us as elected members who represent the people."

Cllr Martin Scanlon seconded the motion and asked that the council's environment section be added to the proposed workshop meeting.