Tramore Local Area Plan - Waterford County Council

In accordance with Section 12 of the Planning & Development Act 2000, theCouncil sent notice and a copy of the draft LAP to the Minister for theEnvironment, Heritage and Local Government, An Bord Pleanala, the prescribedauthorities and the County Development Board.Amendments to the Draft Plan were put on public display from the 10 th of April2007 to the 10 th of May 2007.All submissions were summarised and reviewed and recommendations made onwhether to make amendments to the plan or environmental report. All proposalsand ultimately the recommendations for amendments were assessed against theenvironmental objectives as detailed in the draft environmental report. It wasconcluded that the changes proposed to the Local Area Plan subsequent to thepublic consultation phase were broadly in line with the overall environmentalobjectives of the local authority and that no deterioration of the local environmentwould result as a consequence of the proposed amendments. In conclusion theproposed changes were broadly speaking supported by the SEA.3: Reasons for choosing the plan as adoptedThe Local Area Plan for Tramore, its policies and objectives as set out by the localauthority are key to the future sustainable development of Tramore. The plan aimsto balance the needs of the population with the broader environment in which thatpopulation will live, work and play. The plan has a strong focus towards theconcept of sustainability. It has been shown in the Environmental Report thatalmost all of the plans policies and objectives are consistent with this summary andthat in general the plan will have a neutral to positive impact on the environment asa whole.Three alternative options were highlighted for assessment as part of the SEAprocess namely:• The “do nothing” scenario• The option of not reviewing the LAP• Alternative zoning locationsThe first two options were not considered viable as statutorily the LAP must bereviewed and the option of “doing nothing” and not zoning any additional landswould have a negative overall effect on Tramore and restrict its growth and futuredevelopment.The Plan highlighted the need for additional zoning and there were two alternativesoptions considered:1) Alternative and additional zonings within the ‘developed’ town area;and2) Additional zonings outside the ‘developed’ area of the town.118