Landowners in Armagh and Tyrone are in court on Wednesday in a legal challenge against the Government’s handling of the controversial North South interconnector.
The proceedings on Wednesday, February 19 will challenge a number of decisions by the Department for Infrastructure relating to the discharge of pre-commencement conditions associated with the construction of over 100 towering Pylons through 34 km of Armagh and Tyrone countryside.
The group behind the challenge, SEAT (Safe electricity Armagh and Tyrone) represents the concerns of some 6,500 local residents in close proximity to the route of the proposed overhead North-South Interconnector.
SEAT have called on the new Minister for Infrastructure, Liz Kimmins, to direct that the compulsory wayleave applications for access to lands, which are being vigorously pursued against the innocent landowners of Armagh and Tyrone by her Department, are stopped until these proceedings have reached their conclusion.
An estimated 150 Northern Ireland landowners, mostly small farmers, could be impacted by the proposed pylons which would stretch from Turleenan in County Tyrone and through Armagh for 34 km before crossing the border into Meath Cavan and Monaghan for a further 103km.
Speaking in advance of the court case John Woods from SEAT said: “Not only are there serious issues about the way in which local people have been treated through the process of trying to access private lands but everyone must acknowledge the construction of these huge pylons carrying 400kw cables running through Armagh and Tyrone will blight the landscape, destroy beautiful scenery, damage the environment and reduce the values of homes and farmland.”
The farmers and landowners say that any connector infrastructure should be underground to avoid these unsightly pylons which would turn the rural environment into an industrial zone.
Commenting on consensus among opponents of the plans that the only feasible solution is to underground the cabling, Mr Woods added: “When the Meath Kildare interconnector, which spans 70 km was being planned, and the views of local people considered, the decision to run the cables underground proved to be the right option and had public support.
“The arguments advanced to justify 34km of unsightly pylons through Armagh and Tyrone just don’t stand up to scrutiny; to say it would be too expensive to underground these cables completely ignores any objective evaluation of the impact the overhead structures will have.
“The Government needs to face up to the irreversible damage to the countryside, farmers and tourist businesses and recognise that preserving and protecting the countryside and the quality of rural life is a price worth paying.
“We recognise the need to establish ways of delivering clean electricity, but this pylon scheme is not the answer.”
Since this interconnector was first proposed in 2006, the group has questioned the need and value of this infrastructure, and the methods in which SONI (Northern Ireland’s electricity Transmission System Operator) has engaged with residents in the area.
The court proceedings will challenge a number of decisions of the Department for Infrastructure relating to the planning process and the discharge of pre-commencement conditions within that process.
