Sir, – Further to "EPA anxious Vartry reservoir upgrade proceeds" (January 26th), as the owner of Mount Usher Gardens, I welcome this long-overdue reconstruction of the reservoir at Roundwood. However, it is also true that I continue to take great exception to the manner in which this planning permission has been granted, and this remains the sole basis of my appeal to reverse Wicklow County Council's decision. It is disingenuous for the council to reject concerns that this scheme, as currently proposed, will not have a potentially disastrous impact on the river Vartry.
No independent nor appropriate environmental impact assessment has thus far been commissioned by Irish Water, nor requested by Wicklow County Council. It appears the council is quite satisfied to sit back and take the word of Irish Water’s highly paid consultants regarding the fate of the river Vartry. This is simply not good enough.
That this scheme goes ahead is imperative; however, under no circumstances should it be allowed to go ahead until the continued and healthy survival of the river Vartry, and the Devil’s Glen, Mount Usher Gardens, and the Murrough estuary, which all depend on it, have been put beyond all scientific doubt.
Irish Water and Wicklow County Council should commission and then act upon a responsible, balanced, and properly independent assessment of the multiple impacts of this scheme on an important, unique, and irreplaceable stretch of water, and furthermore, involve the other stakeholders in this process. – Yours, etc,
KONRAD JAY,
Mount Usher Gardens,
Ashford, Co Wicklow.