Planners split on massive Offaly energy domes project

THE giant energy domes proposed for a site near Rhode were opposed by one planner in Offaly County Council and approved by another.

The planning authority granted permission last week for two 500-metre long domes near the site of the demolished Rhode power station.

Proposed by Tullamore-based company Rhode LDES Ltd, the domes will store carbon dioxide and provide a means of storing energy which can be released into the national electricity grid when required.

Standing side by side, they will each be 500 metres long, 120 metres wide and up to 34 metres high.

In a report dated August 5 last, Enda Finlay, assistant planner with the County Council, referred to an earlier report which said the cumulative volume (384,336m²) of both storage batteries “would qualify them as among the largest structures in the Midlands”.

The proposed development would be “visually obtrusive, would not integrate satisfactorily into the landscape of the surrounding area” and “would seriously injure the amenities of the local area and create a precedent for developments of a similar scale and massing in the future”.

Mr Finlay referred to the development site's proximity to Croghan Hill, “an Area of High Amenity, where the Planning Authority has recognised the importance of the scenic quality and recreational value of the area”.

He said the planning authority is committed to “preserving the scenic amenity and recreational potential of this area and to protect it from development that would damage or diminish its overall attractiveness and character”.

Apart from Croghan Hill the area's landscape is flat and he “considered that the proposed development, by reason of its scale and siting, would be visually incongruous and would have serious and detrimental impacts on the visual amenity of this area.”

He accepted the council's commitment to the promotion of efficient energy storage but added “it is considered that the proposed development would be unduly obtrusive by virtue of its visual impact on the landscape.”

He was concerned that it “may establish a precedent for large-scale obtrusive developments in the future across the county” and because of its height, it would not integrate satisfactorily into the surrounding area.

“It is considered that the sheer bulk of the proposed development militates against it nestling into its receiving environment and the potential for landscaping or screening it are unlikely over the lifetime of the proposal,” said the planner.

The council told the company it was concerned the white colour of the domes may look “intrusive and prominent” particularly from viewpoints such as Croghan Hill and invited amended colour proposals “which would allow the structures to blend in more with the landscape.”

The company said it is an operational requirement for the LDES (Long Duration Energy Storage) that it does not overheat and that risk is increased “by applying a dark tone to the dome skin”.

The company gave the council revised photomontages with an altered colour scheme in which the domes appeared more yellow than white.

A previous report from a different assistant planner, Enda Dolan, noted that no information had been given by the applicant on why the domes were to be white.

The company was also asked to submit photomontages showing how the domes would look in the context of other developments in the area, such as a wind farm and pylons.

Further information was sought from Rhode LDES Ltd and two other planners then considered the application again.

On August 7, two days after assistant planner Enda Finlay recommended that permission for the development be refused, Ed Kelly, acting senior executive planner, said it should be granted.

In his report, Mr Kelly said the proposal supported Offaly's policy of promoting the use of efficient energy storage systems and infrastructure.

Mr Kelly referred to the Government's Wind Energy Guidelines from 2006 and said that while they did not provide statutory guidance on the proposed energy domes, they did provide advice for developing large scale structures within flat peatland landscapes: “The vast visual openness with few, if any, dominant geometric elements provides a certain freedom in the siting and design of wind energy developments.”

Mr Kelly concluded: “The nature of the surrounding landscape consists of very flat topography with very expansive vistas. The proposed development, while of a substantial scale, will not be a dominant visual feature given the vast extent and openness of the surrounding landscape. On this basis I recommend that the development be granted.”

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