Ceann Comhairle Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl is among 60 submissions opposing a proposed solar farm in Kildare.

Laois-based EEL Mullacash Solar Ltd is proposing to build a 318ac solar farm near Naas, Co Kildare.

The €100m solar farm will span across 30 fields currently in grass and will have a generation capacity of 105MW of electricity.

In his submission, Deputy Ó Fearghaíl has told the council that he is “totally supportive” of the principle of developing solar farms in appropriate locations and on suitable sites where they can be operated without negatively impacting on adjoining farming and other commercial activities.

However, he continued: “It would seem to me that in respect of this proposed development, the concerns of local residents and stud farm owners are not without significant justification.

“To concentrate three large solar farms in one small geographical location and on top-class agricultural land seems to me to be an initiative that is hard, if not impossible, to justify,” he said.

Equine

He said that the Kildare County Development Plan has always given special protection to the bloodstock industry - given its importance to the economy, both locally and nationally.

“In looking at this application, or indeed similar applications, I would ask you to consider any likely impact on the equine sector and that appropriate expert and scientific studies be undertaken in order to arrive at a sustainable conclusion,” he concluded.

A decision on the planning application is due at the end of the month.