By Anne Lucey

The Kerry slug will suffer from “unmitigated noise pollution” in the construction of the 32 km South Kerry Greenway , an oral hearing into the project has been told.

Unveiled in 2014, the greenway run into difficulties because of route design and the decision by the council to move to compulsory purchase order of the dozens of small land parcels running through small farms along the N70 ring of Kerry.

The 3m wide paved surface for walkers and cyclists mainly along the “abandoned” rail way , may take a year and a half to construct, the oral hearing into the project has been told.

The rare spotted slug, Geomalachus maculosus, protected under the EU habitats directive and the Irish Wildlife Act has been found in numbers at two locations , one rock and one heath.

A roost site in a building for the lesser horsehoe bat has been identified and the building is to be improved “with the view to optimizing the roost and to encourage lesser horsehoe bats to return annually.”

While most species in the scenic and protected area will be unaffected – the Kerry slug will suffer from “unmitigated noise pollution,” and will have to be picked up and moved , the presentation on ecology heard.

The area of greatest affect on the highly protected slug will be the stone wall habitat of the well known Drung Hill Tunnels on the run into Kells Bay.

The slug with relatives in Portugal has been found only in Cork and Kerry until recently when it emerged in Connemara and is one of the southwest’s Iberian species.

“The loss of 2100 metres square of suitable rock habitat at Drung Hill to facilitate the placement of rock gabions is expected to have a permanent moderate to significant negative impact on the Kerry slug in the absence of mitigation.

“There is potential, during the construction phase for direct mortality to occur, which is considered a temporary moderate to significant negative impact,” Muriead Kelly, senior ecologist with Malachy Walsh and Partners on behalf of Kerry County Council said.

A like for like habitat has been identified and a license for pre-construction studies , trapping, hand searches and translocation has been granted by the department of Culture, Heritage, she said.

Last year the slug’s presence in a sesile oakwood led to the realigning of the design of the Macroom bypass, considered vital to access to Kerry.

And yesterday Cllr Johnny Healy-Rae, who is attending the hearing in Tralee said the best thing to do with the slug now would be” to fire him” into the sea at Renard.

“If the same amount of time and energy and expense was put into consulting with the landowners as to counting the slug, we might have no need for an oral hearing,” he said.

The council said the project is vital to stop the ongoing serious depopulation affecting the western area of Iveragh between Glenbeigh and Renard point.

Designed for 1500 cyclists and walkers a day, at peak periods like August the greenway will welcome almost 45,000 people a month, the hearing into both the planning and Compulsory Order purchase process for the greenway in Tralee was told.

Five car parks and toilet facilities are to be built. Two protected railway structures, Cahersiveen railway bridge and the Gleensk Viaduct as well as the Drung Hill tunnels will be repaired.

Rock armour and sea walls must also be carried out to halt coastal erosion Kerry county council engineer Conor Culloo outlined.

A bridge and boardwalk are among new structures in the design.

Mitigation measures by way of screening and overlooking of the under 30 residential properties affected by the greenway are being proposed.

The key reason and policy objective is the ongoing population loss in the four electoral areas through which it will run: all including Cahersiveen town are losing population . Since 2006 the area is down 302 residents whle Kenmare and Killorglin have grown and are thriving.

There are now just 469 pupils at the second level school Colaiste na Sceilge serving Waterville Cahersiveen and south Kerry – down from 742 in 1999, Mr Culloo said.

The area had younger people and more older, and fewer people of a working age than the county as a whole, Mr Culloo said

“The scheme has received overwhelming public support which is reflected in the 103 submissions in support received as part of the application process with one such submission having 1,223 signatures,” he went on.

An annual minimum payment of €300 is being offered as well as €2 a metre for the length running through the greenway is being offered.

The greenway will not be used for motorised vehicles – apart from emergency and maintenance , the council assured the hearing which is set to continue to next week.

The council says there was open consultation since 2015 when a majority of councilors backed management’s proposals to move to compulsory purchase all land parcels when agreement could not be reached with all landowners.

There has been some criticism from public representatives including Cllr Johnny Healy-Rae who is attending, that the hearing is taking place in Tralee rather than in south Kerry itself.

The hearing in Tralee, presided over by planning inspector Karla McBride is attended by around 120 people and is expected to continue to next week.

A number of objections were withdrawn but under 40 remain and the hearing is expected to hear from the national farming body the IFA who fear the use of the Compulsory Purchase Order instrument for an amenity will set a precedent. Other landowners object to interference with farms and with privacy.