COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

South Dublin County Council Crest

MEETING OF LUCAN/PALMERSTOWN/FONTHILL AREA COMMITTEE

Tuesday, January 28, 2019

MOTION NO. 5

MOTION: Councillor L. O'Toole

That this committee ask the CE to discuss the inclusion of ‘Bait laying’ as part of planning applications for all future developments. Currently planning applications require construction traffic management plan, dust pollution, noise pollution plans etc. As rodents issue has become a common issue over the last few years the inclusion of ‘Bait laying’ would help solve this matter.

REPORT:

Section 34(4) of the Planning and Development Acts, as amended, sets out conditions which may be included in any grant of permission. Schedule 5 to the Act sets out conditions which can be imposed in a grant of permission which do not attract compensation. This includes ‘Any condition relating to measures to reduce or prevent the emission or the intrusion of noise or vibration’. Construction management plans are often conditioned in larger developments subject to agreement of the local authority to ensure orderly development and to manage construction traffic.

Planning conditions must be relevant to planning. As set out in the Development Management Guidelines published by the Department under section 48 of the Act, planning conditions must be directly related to the development to be permitted. If not, they may be ultra vires and unenforceable. It is also noted that planning conditions should not be included if they are better dealt with under other codes.

Bait laying is a method used to indicate if rodents are active in a place and is often followed by the laying of poison. Where poison is laid it must be so placed that is in the correct spots and requires constant rechecking. The EU thinking on rodent poisoning is completely away from poisoning in a scattergun format.  It is the exact opposite and even factories having rodent boxes around their perimeters is meant to be strictly controlled

The issue of bait laying is better addressed through the offices of environmental health and is not a condition which would be properly imposed through a planning permission.