Offaly County Development Plan 2021–2027 (as varied) — Chapter 5: Economic Development Strategy

1. Page 41

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   Offaly County Development Plan 2021-2027 Chapter 5 Economic Development Strategy Page 201 5.12 Rural Economic Development Objectives Strategy REDO–01 It is an objective of the Council to support rural employment initiatives across the county, subject to the principles of proper planning and sustainable development. REDO–02 It is an objective of the Council to support the progression and delivery of projects in the context of available National and European funding, that support: • Community structural development; • Local business and enterprise development; • Infrastructure and capital development, • Agricultural development; and • Tourism and heritage development. Agriculture REDO–03 It is an objective of the Council to support agricultural development and encourage the continuation of agriculture as a contributory means of maintaining population in the rural area and sustaining the rural economy. REDO–04 It is an objective of the Council to ensure that all agricultural activities adhere to any legislation on water quality and biodiversity, for example, Phosphorus Regulations, Water Framework Directive, Nitrates Directive and Habitats Directive. Peatland After-use REDO–05 It is an objective of the Council to support the longer-term strategic planning for industrial peatland areas, which should include a comprehensive after-use framework plan for the industrial peatlands and associated infrastructure including workshops, office buildings and industrial sites, which addresses environmental, economic and social issues including employment and replacement enterprise reflecting the current transition from employment based around peat extraction. Examples of after use and re-purposing of workshops and production facilities could include outreach training centres, gravel extraction, bike-hire facilities, enterprise space / co-working facilities, aquaculture, birch water harvesting, herb growing, resource management / recycling centre, climate change mitigation (such as through renewable energy, carbon sink, data centres, battery energy storage, afforestation including native woodland, a Green Energy Hub, flood management), and tourism (such as through peatways, recreational forestry, wilderness, eco-tourism based on biodiversity, and a designation of a National Peatlands Heritage Park). REDO–06 It is an objective of the Council to support the Midlands Regional Transition Team in developing a ‘Holistic Plan for Just Transition in the Midland Region’ including an inventory of project proposals and actions to support just transition in the Midlands and to assist the region in identifying potential investment needs for inclusion in a programme of support under the new EU Just Transition Fund.

2. Page 42

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   Offaly County Development Plan 2021-2027 Chapter 5 Economic Development Strategy Page 202 REDO-07 It is an objective of the Council to support the development of Lough Boora Discovery Park as a National Peatlands Centre and to support the development of further strategic linkages with the local and regional green infrastructure network. REDO-08 It is an objective of the Council to consider proposals for the potential re-purposing of both Shannonbridge and Edenderry peat powered electricity generating plants, and the appropriate rehabilitation of associated lands.

Source Offaly County Council: Offaly County Development Plan 2021–2027 (as varied) — Chapter 5: Economic Development Strategy (2021–2027) · Licence the publisher's termsText read from the publisher’s PDF; tables, maps and drawings do not survive as text, and page numbers are the PDF’s (its first page is 1). Check the original before relying on a passage.