A group of Wexford residents have threatened "massive resistance" against plans by Eircell to erect a mobile phone mast in their area.
The residents, many of them local farmers, have mounted a 24-hour picket at the proposed mast site at Ratharogue, about four miles from New Ross.
Planning permission for the development has been granted by Wexford County Council and upheld by An Bord Pleanala, but the protesters insist that the views of those living locally should still be taken into account.
"Eircell's view appears to be that there is no need to take any notice of the people living in the area," according to a spokeswoman for the protesters, Countess Ann Bernstorff, of the locally based Berkeley Environment Group. "But the people in the area have a very clear idea of where they fit into the scheme of things.
"Some people might think we will break but if you're waiting for that to happen, don't hold your breath. There will continue to be massive resistance to this." She added that residents had received "no satisfaction" from a meeting with Eircell representatives last week.
An Eircell spokeswoman denied that the company was oblivious to the views of local residents. "Of course, we care about local communities and for that very reason we want to bring better coverage to the New Ross area. We have a community relations division that does nothing else but talk to communities."
This division sought to explain to residents the technology involved in establishing a mobile phone network and also that "it's not a danger to have a mobile phone base station in their communities. The fact is it saves lives. There are hundreds of cases known where mobile phones have been used to save lives."
Countess Bernstorff said, however, it was not possible to give residents long-term assurances about the health implications when experts currently disagreed on the issue. The Ratharogue protest was also being lodged on environmental grounds, as the proposed mast would be located on a prominent site overlooking the parish.
She said the protesters, who represented up to 200 people, were encouraged by the support of passing motorists on the Enniscorthy-New Ross road and would maintain their picket for as long as necessary.
The Eircell spokeswoman, who claimed the picketers did not represent the majority local view, said the problem could only be resolved by dialogue and the company was prepared to have further talks with the residents this week. She could not say what action the company would take if the protesters refused to abandon their picket.