Construction Ireland Construction Directory
Time and date
CONSTRUCTION DIRECTORY
Share this page
Construction News
05/05/2010

Campaigner Takes A5 Dispute To EC

An environmentalist is taking his case to Europe to prevent the building of a major new cross border road scheme.

The green campaigner, who is opposed to the construction of the new A5 dual carriageway between Aughnacloy and Londonderry said it is because he fears it will have a devastating impact on the environment in the North West.

The road will run across into the Irish Republic as well and has been supported by Dublin as well as Stormont politicians.

He is now taking his case to Europe in a bid to prevent the construction companies moving in to clear the hundreds of acres that will be involved in the multi-million pound project.

Newbuildings man, Victor Christie, a local spokesman for Friends of the Earth and a member of the A5 Alliance, told the lcoa paper, the Strabane Weekly News that he hopes to present his concerns over many aspects of the £850m scheme to the European Commission within the next month.

-- Advertisement --

Describing the project as a "dangerous experiment", Mr Christie warned that the preferred route of the A5 will run through a "substantial" flood plain for nine kilometres between Strabane and Bready, leading to serious consequences for the surrounding landscape.

Mr Christie, an engineer who has worked on motorways in the UK and Canada, said: "They are planning to build the new road on a high embankment going through the flood plain.

"This would raise the water table substantially on 2,000 acres of good farmland with rich fertile soil. This land would then be subject to serious flooding in the future, thereby diminishing the soil quality of the flood plain."

The environmental activist said that this would cause the ground to lose fertility, the soil to become more stagnant, and would also affect the nesting sites of local birds. Noise pollution would also increase as the height of the dual carriageway above the landscape would make sound carry much further, he claimed.

Mr Christie added: "The sad thing is, the evidence won't be completely obvious maybe for years afterwards. By that time, the people in charge of the construction work will have gone."

The Newbuildings man also wants a safety audit carried out to ensure that the danger from high winds to the raised road has been mitigated.

Claiming that the economics of the project "don't stand up", he warned that the cost of building the road through the flood plain would be four times more than building it through normal, hard ground.

In a recent email sent to Stormont Environment Minister Edwin Poots, Mr Christie also suggested that the road should instead be taken into Donegal at Lifford and connected to Londonderry via Bridgend.

See: Consultancy Fees On A5 Accelerate

(BMcC/GK)

Latest Construction News

03/12/2024

A £12 million investment will be made by one of the UK & Ireland's leading construction manufacturers, Tobermore, to expand its operations. Kick-starting the expansion, the L'Derry-based company will invest £4 million in new jobs, including the creation of a dedicated technical design team to ...
03/12/2024

Dankse Bank have supported an investment totalling over £3.1million to expand the Ballymena headquarters of Northern Ireland's leading precast concrete manufacturer and supplier, Moore Concrete Products Ltd. The expansion will include building three new factories totalling 4,750square metres for ...
03/12/2024

The second phase of construction works at Kiltipper Park in South Dublin were officially marked recently by a sod-turning event. The works about to commence will include the construction of an extended car park; footpath and northern pedestrian entrance improvements; sports pitch construction and ...
03/12/2024

Ballyclare-based housebuilder Hagan Homes has appointed a new Managing Director. Jim Burke, who boasts over 35 years of dedicated service within the Northern Ireland company resulting in a wealth of experience and knowledge of the industry, will take up the role as Hagan Homes embarks on a ...
03/12/2024

Northern Ireland construction firm GRAHAM has received National GOLD honours for the Belfast-based Nelson Place Student Accommodation in the Climate Change Benefits category at this year's Green Apple Awards. The state-of-the-art facility boasts the first two blue roofs to be installed in Northern ...
03/12/2024

Works to replace over 8.7km of ageing water mains with new, modern pipes in Sligo have successfully been completed, Uisce Éireann has announced. As a result, customers to the south of Sligo town are benefitting from a more secure and reliable water supply. The recent works included three sections ...
03/12/2024

A transformative project at the Melvin Recreational and Resource Complex in Garrison, County Fermanagh, has successfully been completed. The project, which was delivered under the Covid Recovery Small Settlement Regeneration Programme, saw the Complex's bedrooms and dormitory rooms enhanced into ...
03/12/2024

A public consultation is now open regarding the newly launched Draft Dromore Place Plan by Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council. The plan outlines key projects to rejuvenate the area and enhance its social, economic and environmental well-being, with input included from 614 local ...
03/12/2024

Road construction and utility works are currently ongoing in Ballina, Co. Tipperary. The works, which began yesterday, resulted in the urgent closure of the R-496-13 road from the junction at Roolagh at R-494-0 for a 100m section. This closure will remain in place until 11.59pm on Saturday, ...
03/12/2024

Ground investigation works are set to commence from next week in Wicklow. The works, which will take place on the N81 at Hollywood Junction (approximately 0.25km either side of the junction), will begin from Monday, December 9, until Thursday, December 12. Temporary traffic management will be in ...
RK EnviroSmart Heating Renewable SolutionsSnickers WorkwearActive Electrical LTDSpratt Fireplaces & Stoves Centre LtdFitzpatricks LogisticsConway Piling Ltd.Roadmaster Caravans LimitedCCTV Solutions IEAME Electrical Smart Homes Ltd
Terms and Conditions
2024/12/04 07:50:46