Core Refusal Reason
The application was refused due to the site's unsuitability for safe wastewater disposal owing to a high water table and poor drainage, alongside concerns regarding inappropriate backland development in an upland rural area.
Decision Maker's Conclusion
- The site is unsuitable for the safe disposal of treated effluent due to an elevated water table observed within 100mm of ground level and poor environmental drainage characteristics, posing a risk to public health and the environment.
- The proposed wastewater treatment design fails to comply with the mandatory requirements of the EPA Code of Practice: Waste Water Treatment and Disposal Systems Serving Single Houses (2021).
- The proposal constitutes piecemeal, uncoordinated backland development in an upland landscape area which would erode the rural character of the locality and set an undesirable precedent for similar future developments.
Cited Policies (CDP)
Kilkenny City and County Development Plan 2021-2027Landscape Character Assessment of the current County Development Plan
Decision Document Summary
Niamh Malone applied for permission to construct a single-storey dwelling and a wastewater treatment system on a backland greenfield site at Ballyshane, Inistioge, Co. Kilkenny. Although the applicant met the criteria for rural housing need, the site was deemed unsuitable for development. Kilkenny County Council refused the application primarily because the high water table and poor drainage conditions prevented the safe disposal of effluent, and the backland nature of the site was considered de...SOURCE PDFOpen Original
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