Our objections to the biomethane plant at Killough Quarry: planning reference 2560019 on eplanning.ie/ Tipperary
Re: Formal
Objection to Planning Application 2560019
Roadstone Ltd – Killough Renewable Energy Development
Anaerobic Digestion, Biomethane, Gas Upgrading and Liquid BioGas (LBG) Facility
On behalf of Killough Community Group, we object to this application on the following planning, safety, and environmental grounds:
· Major accident and environmental risks are not adequately assessed. The EIAR does not properly evaluate credible accident scenarios, including fire, explosion, containment failure, or Major Accident to the Environment (MATTE).
· The development does not demonstrate compliance with COMAH and Seveso III regulations. Traffic risks, public safety, environmental protection, and emergency planning are inadequately addressed.
· A material alteration from Compressed BioGas (CBG) to Liquid BioGas (LBG) significantly increases risk due to cryogenic storage and higher energy density, yet this change was not re-advertised or fully reassessed.
· The proposed location within an active blasting quarry conflicts with Seveso III land-use planning principles. Risks relating to vibration, blast impacts, safety distances, and domino effects are not addressed.
· Local road infrastructure is unsuitable for the scale and type of traffic proposed, particularly when assessed cumulatively with other existing and proposed developments.
· The site overlies a highly vulnerable karst limestone aquifer. The EIAR fails to assess spill scenarios, lagoon leakage, reactor failure, or LBG releases and their rapid movement through karst groundwater systems.
· Anaerobic digestion by-products may contain pathogens, antibiotic-resistant genes, microplastics, and heavy metals, posing risks to local wells, watercourses, and the River Suir SAC.
· The development represents over-intensification, clustering multiple high-hazard installations in a confined quarry, increasing the likelihood of cascading or domino-type accidents.
· Air quality and public health risks are insufficiently assessed. Potential emissions include hydrogen sulphide, methane, and carbon dioxide, which present toxicity and asphyxiation hazards.
· The scale and industrial nature of the development threaten local biodiversity within a proposed National Heritage Area.
· The development would significantly harm rural visual amenity and negatively affect residential amenity and property values.