Delays in planning permission for on-farm buildings works in Co Tipperary are being caused by “serial objectors," local councillors and farmers heard at a South Tipperary Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) meeting last Wednesday.
The delays in securing planning permission are “designed to frustrate farmers but have a much bigger effect," IFA South Tipperary chair Pat Carroll told the Irish Farmers Journal.
Carroll said that the meeting heard that “practically all agri planning objections in Tipperary are coming from one individual".
While objections to applications may be “designed to aggravate farmers", the objections and associated delays have a much bigger knock-on effect, Carroll said.
“It doesn’t just affect the farmer, it affects the local digger driver, the local fabricator, the shed erector,” he explained.
“Certain works are required to be completed by farmers so that they can abide by regulations,” he pointed out.
Wider problem
“If a farmer is told they need to have extra soiled water storage capacity, and a serial objector makes an objection, what does a farmer do?” he asked.
“If a farmer has a county council inspection and they are told they needs a dungstead, some county councils will require planning permission, and what happens if there is an objection?”
“We want to highlight the fact that this is a wider problem than just farmers, it affects other people who work in rural areas, the rural economy,” said Carroll.
“Farming already has a massive problem with generational renewal and if a young person comes home to farm with their parents, they usually need to do some works to upgrade and generate more income. If that younger generation gets stopped in their tracks, it’s not good for generation renewal.”
Mother attacked
Carroll outlined some of the planning objection cases IFA members have contacted him about.
“I had one man contact me about a slatted shed and crush he wanted to put up that he got an objection to,” said Carroll.
“That man told me his biggest problem wasn’t the slatted shed being delayed but the crush. His mother was attacked by a cow and he needs better facilities,” he explained. “Now [because of the objection delay] he’ll be lucky if he has it done for winter 2025.”
“Another case was a farmer who had a slatted shed and he needed to add a lean-to at the back of the slats to comply with the organic scheme and he got an objection.”