The Supreme Court has upheld a High Court order quashing a decision to refuse planning permission for a wind farm in Co Laois.
It dismissed an appeal by An Coimisiún Pleanála and concluded that the commission’s performance of its function was “insufficient as a matter of law”.
Mr Justice Richard Humphreys in January in the High Court quashed An Coimisíún Pleanála’s decision to refuse permission sought by Coolglass Wind Farm Ltd for the development.
He found the board failed to act in a compliant manner, as far as practicable, with climate objectives set out in the 2015 Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act.
The Supreme Court found that the evident purpose and effect of the Climate Act is to strengthen the obligations imposed upon bodies, including the commission, and “to make the performance of all their functions consistent with the climate objectives insofar as is practicable”.
“That obligation is, in principle, enforceable by a court.”
The three Supreme Court judges in their ruling added that the legislation says all public bodies must follow the act “as far as is practicable” and this allows for “a range of possible outcomes open to the relevant body”.
It says this could allow the commission to refuse permission to a renewable energy project because it contravenes a development plan, as was the case with the Coolglass proposal, but only if it has considered if that development plan is consistent with climate objectives.
“It is not apparent that the commission ever engaged with that question in a real and substantive way, and instead the decision and report are phrased in terms that seem to imply that the very fact that the development would contravene the development plan was considered itself a reason to refuse the permission.”