New public amenity opened at Offaly wind farm

A SENSORY garden has been opened by Bord na Mona at Mountlucas wind farm.

Pippa Hackett, Minister of State for Land Use and Biodiversity at the Department of Agriculture officially opened the new facility on Monday and hailed it as a wonderful amenity.

The garden provides children and adults alike with the opportunity to gain physical and mental stimulation while being in an outdoor environment.

Bord na Mona also described it is a refuge for everyone to enjoy and to explore all that nature has to offer at Mountlucas wind farm.

Designed and landscaped by Ken Eustace Landscaping, the sensory garden is filled with enticing sounds, scents, and textures to stimulate the five senses.

These will appeal especially to children with special needs and adults with dementia.

The space hosts a wide range of interactive features for the whole family to enjoy, including a sensory path, busy board and music board.

The sensory path is accessible for wheelchair users and there are benches where people can relax while exploring the wind farm.

Speaking at an event to mark the opening, which was attended by pupils from Daingean National School Minister Hackett said: “I would like to congratulate Bord na Móna and everyone who has worked on this project. The Sensory Garden is a very inclusive space and makes a visit to Mount Lucas, which is a wonderful outdoor amenity, even more enjoyable for families. The new sensory garden is a brilliant place to unwind for both the young and old and to readjust our senses. It is a place of peace and tranquillity and will be of particular benefit to those with sensory processing issues.”

John Reilly, head of renewable energy at Bord na Móna said: “A key focus for Bord na Móna in developing Mountlucas wind farm was to ensure that the local community benefitted. Providing a variety of amenities to enhance the enjoyment of the local community has been at the heart of the development.”

Mr Reilly added: “Today we have over 10km of public amenity facilities that are used for cycling, walking, and running. We are committed to ensuring that all members of the community can enjoy this wonderful amenity and our new sensory garden achieves this.  We are responding to a need within our community and we are delighted with the positive reactions and feedback from visitors.”

Catherine Swaine, advocacy coordinator at Bord na Móna, who led the development of the garden said: “I am delighted that our new garden will benefit both children and adults with sensory processing issues. This space has a variety of colours, textures and surfaces to provide visitors with a wide range of sensory experiences.  The colourful planting in the garden has also been specially chosen to support a sensory experience. It is fantastic to see so many people enjoying it”.

Mountlucas wind farm is located on Mountlucas bog, which consists of 1,100 hectares of cutaway peatlands near Daingean. The Mountlucas bog forms part of the Derrygreenagh group of bogs that straddles the counties of Kildare, Offaly and Westmeath.

The wind farm was commissioned in 2014 and consists of 28 Siemens 3.0DD-101 turbines with a total installed capacity of 84MW.

Since the opening of the wind farm to the public over 230,000 visits have been made to the 10km amenity facility. This is used for cycling, walking, and running by local community schools, sports and athletics clubs, and societies. Over 45,000 people used the walkway amenity in 2020, an increase of 25% on 2019.

The installation of a 'learning hub' at Mountlucas wind farm has also been completed. It contains a series of interactive hands-on activities based around wind energy and technology.