Planning Permission Granted For Brishey Wind Farm Near Dungiven

Planning permission has been granted for a new four-turbine wind farm on the slopes of Benbradagh Mountain near Dungiven.

Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council's Planning Committee approved the application on Wednesday morning during a meeting at the Council Chamber, Riada House, 14 Charles Street, Ballymoney.

The decision gives the go-ahead to the Brishey Wind Farm, a development which has attracted significant opposition during the planning process.

The application, LA01/2023/0008/F, relates to land in the townlands of Brishey and Curraghlane, approximately 4.8km east of Dungiven.

The development will comprise four wind turbines, each with a maximum blade-tip height of 150 metres, together with an electrical substation and control building, internal access tracks, spoil deposition areas, a temporary construction compound, delivery-route junction improvements and other associated works.

Scheme reduced from six turbines

The wind farm will have a maximum generating capacity of 19.2MW, with each of the four turbines capable of generating up to 4.8MW.

The development was originally proposed as a six-turbine wind farm.

However, two turbines were subsequently removed from the plans in response to concerns from the council's Planning Department about the development's potential visual impact on the surrounding landscape.

The site is located on the eastern slopes of Benbradagh Mountain and lies within the north-eastern part of the Sperrins Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

1,429 objections and petitions with 2,606 signatures

The application has proved controversial, with 1,429 objections lodged against the development.

In addition, four petitions totalling 2,606 signatures opposing the development have been submitted.

Hundreds of representations in support of the wind farm have also been received, with the committee papers recording 526 letters of support.

The committee report records four petitions totalling 2,606 signatures alongside the substantial number of individual objections.

Concerns raised during the planning process have included the potential visual impact on Benbradagh and the wider Sperrins landscape, the cumulative impact of other wind farms, residential amenity, noise, biodiversity and the natural environment.

The application has been under consideration for several years and has undergone several assessments and updates.

At one stage, consideration of the application was deferred to allow further environmental information to be submitted regarding the cumulative impact of wind farm development.

This followed concerns that an assessment had not included the consented Magheramore Wind Farm, approximately 6.5km south-west of the Brishey site. Planning officials said that a revised cumulative assessment was required to account for the development.

Planning officers recommended approval

In the papers presented to councillors for Wednesday's meeting, planning officials recommended approval of the application subject to conditions.

The council's assessment concluded that the proposal was acceptable in relation to a range of issues, including public safety, human health, residential amenity, visual amenity, landscape character, biodiversity, nature conservation and local natural resources.

The council's Environmental Health Department also raised no objection to the predicted noise levels at identified residential properties, with conditions recommended to control noise associated with the development.

Planning officials acknowledged the development's sensitive location, but concluded that the reduced four-turbine scheme was acceptable when assessed against the relevant planning policies and other material considerations.

The proximity of the proposed development to the existing Evishagaran Wind Farm was also considered, and the assessment concluded that the Brishey turbines would appear as an extension of the existing wind farm rather than a separate cluster.

Following consideration by councillors on Wednesday morning, planning permission was granted.

The decision clears the way for the four-turbine Brishey Wind Farm to proceed, subject to the conditions attached to the planning approval.