IROPI application the way forward to secure the ‘M 50 of the West’
Today’s (Thursday’s) judgment from the Court of Justice of the European Union brings clarity to the Galway City Outer Bypass project and enables the continuation of legal proceedings in the Irish Courts. The 14-page judgment delivered by the Third Chamber of the EU Court dealt with three questions referred to it by the Irish Supreme Court concerning the relationship between infrastructure planning applications and environmentally sensitive areas as designated under the EU’s Habitats’ Directives.
The EU Court of Justice based it judgment on European Union law, chiefly the provisions of the Habitats’ Directives, Irish law such as the 1993 Roads Act as well as existing case law which has developed from cases involving many other Member States.
Commented Galway West Deputy Seán Kyne: “With today’s judgment the EU Court of Justice has brought clarity which will help to not only progress the Bypass project but also assist planning authorities across the entire Union when making planning applications involving environmentally-sensitive areas.
“While it’s widely accepted, by almost all stakeholders, that the Galway Bypass will affect a Special Area of Conservation, the EU Court has provided additional certainty by noting that planning authorities must realise that any ‘lasting and irreparable loss of the whole or part of a priority natural habitat’ constitutes an adverse effect on the integrity of the site.
“However, it’s also crucial to note that the EU Court further advises that national planning authorities may grant an application for a project such as the GCOB if the application is made through IROPI – Imperative Reasons of Overriding Public Interest – if that authority is satisfied that the project is imperative and that there are no alternative solutions.
“Tens of thousands of citizens across Galway and the West will benefit from the Bypass which is a key part of the solution to the region’s transport problems. The Galway City Outer Bypass remains very much alive.
“The Irish Supreme Court will now take on board today’s EU Court judgment and I will continue to work with Galway’s local authorities and the Ministers of Transport and Environment in pursuing an IROPI application so that we can secure what is in effect the West of Ireland’s M 50,” concluded Deputy Kyne.