Review of Connaught Waste Management Plan

Submission dated September 4th 2004

     
 
billyfinnerty1945@hotmail.com

From :  William Finnerty <wfinnerty@eircom.net>
Sent :  Saturday, September 4, 2004 10:22 AM
To :  "Ray Norton (Director of Services, Mayo County Council)" <rnorton@mayococo.ie>
CC :  "New Inn Anti-Dump Chairman (Vincent Costello)" <repsvc@indigo.ie>, "Kilconnell Anti-Dump Group Secretary (Annette Gilchrist)" <kilconnellantidumpsecretary@yahoo.co.uk>, "An Taisce (Yahoo Discussion Group)" <atdiscussion@yahoogroups.com>, "Ann Marie Kelly Discussion Group" <annmariekelly@yahoogroups.com>, "CelticParty(Yahoo)" <TheCelticParty@yahoogroups.com>, "East Galway Green Party (Siobhan Nevin)" <siobhannevin2004@yahoogroups.com>, "Green Party Ireland (Yahoo Group)" <greenireland@yahoogroups.com>, "Kilconnell Anti-Dump Internet Group" <KilconnellAntiDump@groups.msn.com>, "Nature Ireland" <natureireland@yahoogroups.com>, "New Inn AntiDump Internet Group" <NewInnAntiDump@groups.msn.com>, "Tara / Skreen Group" <taraskreen@yahoogroups.com>, "Woodlawn House Preservation Society" <WoodlawnHousePreservationSociety@groups.msn.com>, "Martin Egan (Principal Lawyer, Fair Murtagh Law Firm)" <martinegan@fair-murtagh.ie>, "Gearoid Geraghty (Lawyer, Fair Murtagh, Ballinasloe)" <gearoidgeraghty@fair-murtagh.ie>, "Law Society (Republic of Ireland)" <H.Mountaine@LawSociety.ie>, "05 Yah" <finnachta@yahoo.co.uk>, "04 Hot" <finnachta@hotmail.com>, "03 Hot" <billyfinnerty1945@hotmail.com>, "02 Yah" <newinngalway@yahoo.co.uk>, "01 Eir" <wfinnerty@eircom.net>, "President Mary McAleese" <webmaster@aras.irlgov.ie>, "Prime Minister Bertie Ahern" <taoiseach@taoiseach.irlgov.ie>, "Minister for Justice (Michael McDowell TD)" <Michael.McDowell@oireachtas.ie>, "Martin Cullen T.D. (Republic of Ireland Minister for the Environment and Local Government)" <press-office@environ.irlgov.ie>, "An Bord Pleanala" <bord@pleanala.ie>, "Environment Protection Agency" <info@epa.ie>, "Ian Lumley (An Taisce)" <heritage@antaisce.org>, "Friends Of The Irish Environment" <admin@friendsoftheirishenvironment.net>, "VOICE of Irish Concern for the Environment" <avoice@iol.ie>, "The Democracy Commission (Ireland)" <democracycommission@tascnet.ie>, "Vincent Salafia (Lawyer, Tara/Skreen Group)" <vsalafia@eircom.net>, "Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy (Chief Commissioner of Police, Republic of Ireland)" <comstaff@iol.ie>, "Assistant Police Commissioner (Galway area)" <ekeating@iol.ie>, "Jim Higgins (MEP)" <Jim.Higgins@finegael.ie>, "Marian Harkin (MEP)" <marianh@marianharkin.com>, "Sean O'Neachtain (MEP)" <seanoneachtain@eircom.net>, "Stavros Dimas (EU Commissioner for Environment & Social Affairs)" <empl-info@cec.eu.int>, "Jose Manuel Barroso (President of EU Commission)" <press-web@cec.eu.int>
Subject :  Review of Connaught Regional Waste Management Plan

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Dear Mr Norton,

I am writing to you in response to information circulated recently by Galway City Councillor Niall O'Brolchain.
 
It is my understanding that a review of the Connaught Regional Waste Management Plan is to take place shortly, and that members of the public have been invited to submit their views to you on the matter before September 7th 2004.
 
According to information available to me, which can be viewed at Internet address http://www.finnachta.com/bunreacht.htm, Galway County Council (i.e. Local Government) has TWICE rejected the Connaught Waste Management Plan; and, on both occasions, the decisions taken were arrived at UNANIMOUSLY.
 
Following the above mentioned decisions, and through the use of what I (and other local people) regard as UNCONSTITUTIONAL LEGISLATION, the Government then altered parts of the Waste Management Act so that decision making powers regarding the location and use of superdumps and incinerators were removed from the democratically elected local government representatives, and placed instead in the hands of non-elected County Council managers.
 
It appears to me that the legislation which has been generated to bring about the above mentioned shift in power represents a straightforward, and totally unacceptable, violation of Article 28A of the Constitution, or "Bunreacht" (i.e. the "Primary Law"), of the Republic of Ireland - part of which (Item 1), reads as follows:

"The State recognises the role of local government in providing a forum for the democratic representation of local communities, in exercising and performing at local level powers and functions conferred by law and in promoting by its initiatives the interests of such communities."
 
Please note that one of the local residents where I live, law student Ms Ann Marie Kelly, is at the present time preparing to have the constitutionality of the Waste Management Act alterations referred to above challenged in the High Court.  As you may already know, our particular part of East Galway is now threatened with TWO huge superdumps (separated by a distance of just a few miles): one in New Inn, and one in Kilconnell; and, that BOTH of the locations chosen have been repeatedly rejected by our democratically elected local government representatives - on the grounds that the locations in question are totally unsuitable, partly because of the numbers of people living very close to each of the 2 sites involved.
 
With further reference to the Connaught Regional Waste Management Plan, there also appears to be a second very important (and very relevant) Constitutional issue connected with the Aarhus Convention Agreement, which the Republic of Ireland signed on June 25th 1998.  According to Article 29 (Section 5, Point 1) of the Constitution of the Republic of Ireland: "Every international agreement to which the State becomes a party shall be laid before Dail Eireann".  In so far as I can establish, and with due regard for the fact that well over SIX YEARS have now passed, the matter of the State signing the Aarhus Convention Agreement has NEVER been laid before Dail Eireann (the Republic of Ireland Parliament).  As can be seen at Internet address http://www.finnachta.com/Oireachtas30June2004.htm, this matter was brought to the attention of Environment Minister Martin Cullen T.D. on June 25th 2004.
 
It would be much appreciated if you could please ensure that all those connected with the Review of the Connaught Regional Waste Management Plan are made aware of the contents of this letter.
 
Sometime within the coming few days, I plan to place a copy this e-mail at the following Internet address, which has translation facilities for several European Union languages: http://www.finnachta.com/ConnaughtWasteManagementReview.htm
 
Later today I will also send a printed (and signed) copy of this e-mail to you through the registered post, which I will  address as follows: Mr Ray Norton, Director of Services, Mayo County Council, Aras an Chontae, The Mall, Castlebar, County Mayo.
 
Yours sincerely,
 
  
 
Mr William Finnerty.
 
"St Albans"
New Inn
Ballinasloe
County Galway
Republic of Ireland.
 
 
     
receipt

Post Office tracking system shows delivery time for above letter as September 6th 2004 at 12 PM

 

     
 

Legislation and the role of the President of the Republic of Ireland:
http://www.oasis.gov.ie/government_in_ireland/government_and_politics_at_national_level/
president_of_ireland/president_and_legislation.html

Checking and correcting unconstitutional legislation (Republic of Ireland):
http://www.oasis.gov.ie/government_in_ireland/the_constitution/
unconstitutional_legislation_and_decisions.html

Irish Legislation (BAILII):
http://www.bailii.org/ie/legis/num_act/

 Irish Legal Information Initiative (IRLII):
http://www.ucc.ie/law/irlii/index.php

 
     
 
 

Environmental & Democracy Organisations
(Republic of Ireland)

 
 

http://www.antaisce.org/

http://www.voice.buz.org/

http://www.friendsoftheirishenvironment.net/

http://www.democracycommission.ie/showlist.asp?ID=157


http://www.pleanala.ie/

http://www.epa.ie/
 


 
     
 
     
  More information on the problem referred to above regarding Article 28A of the Constitution can be found (under Item 1) in the February 21st 2004 Appeal to An Bord Pleanala at:

http://www.finnachta.com/BordPleanalaAppeal.htm

 
     

 

     
 

Bunreacht na hÉireann

Constitution of Ireland:
http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/upload/publications/297.htm

Those unfamiliar with Celtic languages may be interested to know that the above word "Bunreacht" is a composite of the two Celtic words "bun" and "reacht": meaning "primary" and "law" respectively.  The Celtic words "na hÉireann" simply mean "of Ireland".

Google Listings on the
Primary Law of the Republic of Ireland:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&q=Irish+Constitution&btnG=Search
 

 
     
 
 

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