Fishermen Whipping Up Storm over Planned Windfarm

A major storm is brewing over plans by Belfast ship building company Harland and Wolfe to build a windfarm near the coddling bank between Wicklow and Bray. Fishermen on the East Coast have already announced their intention to lodge a major objection to the plan on the grounds that it will seriously affect their livlihood.

A Second Windfarm for Wicklow

It is understood that representatives from Harland and Wolfe have already held preliminary talks with officials from the Department of the Marine with the intention of lodging a full application in the near future. They have also written to lifeboat and harbour authorities along the coast to get their feelings on the issue.

However, it is also understood that fishermen along the coast from Dublin to Arklow are less than happy with the plan and intend to take a firm stand in an attempt the block the windfarm from going ahead.

Other projects in the past that involved the carrying out of work close to the coddling banks have been met with stiff opposition by the fishermen who claimed that those banks provided their main source of income. Interference with the banks, they said, would drive away the fish and put them out of business.