Members of the Ballyvass Biogas Concern working group, Geraldine Curran, Paddy Byrne and Rachael Wall have kindly agreed to be signatories on the Ballyvass Biogas Credit Union account.

Help Us Protect Ballyvass and Surrounding Communities from a Large Industrial Biogas Plant

We are the Ballyvass Biogas Concern Group, representing concerned residents of Ballyvass, Mullaghcreelan, Kilkea, Belan, Moone and Castledermot. We urgently need your support to oppose the construction of a Large Industrial Biomethane facility being proposed by a private company, Cycle0, in our peaceful rural community.

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What’s Happening?

Cycle0 is preparing to submit a planning application for a 40 GWh biogas production facility, including an anaerobic digestion plant and a gas injection point, just 2km from Castledermot. Despite the scale and environmental impact of this project, no consultation has been held with our community.

The plant will require 74,000 tonnes of feedstock annually—this includes slurry, food waste, raw meat, blood, and grain. It will produce 70,000 tonnes of digestate, which is planned to be used as fertilizer.

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Why We’re Concerned

• Traffic Impact: The plant will bring an estimated 451 heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) weekly to our narrow rural roads over a 5.5 day period. Combined with a recently approved quarry extension (adding 187 more HGVs), this will give a total of 638 additional HGVs using local roads on a weekly basis. The majority of which will travel through Castledermot as all associated HGV traffic coming from the Athy/Laois direction must travel to the site through Castledermot. Passing Kilkea and Castledermot Primary schools, to join Castledermot main street at the traffic lights. All other feeder roads will also be affected by the additional traffic from other directions. This poses serious risks to safety and traffic congestion, especially for children attending nearby schools and families living along these routes.

• Environmental Risk: The site lies next to Mullaghcreelan Wood, home to protected species and an amenity area used by thousands of people every week. The site also sits above waterways that flow into the River Barrow and River Lerr, both designated Special Areas of Conservation.

• Impact on Local Life: The facility will be just 300 meters from homes and will have a direct impact on over 100 residents living along the L8050 road. Noise, odour, traffic, and potential water and air pollution are major concerns.

• No Proper Oversight: There are no current statutory guidelines for where such facilities should be placed, and the government is pushing for more plants without considering the impact on local communities and without statutory regulations to ensure planning conditions are adhered to.

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What We Stand For

We support renewable energy and biomethane production—but only when these projects are located in appropriate, non-residential areas, and are subject to strict regulations and transparent community engagement.

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How You Can Help

We need funds to:

• Hire planning and environmental experts

• Cover legal and administrative costs

• Raise public awareness

• Ensure our voices are heard during the planning process

Every donation, no matter how small, helps us protect our environment, our health, and our community.

A Ballyvass Biogas Concern Group bank account has been set up in Carlow Credit Union. IBAN IE77CDEU99110111028543. All donations will transfer into the account and if people prefer they can donate through online banking or in person in Carlow Credit Union.

Any unused funds will be donated to local community organisations.

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Please Stand With Us

Help us to preserve the safety, character, and natural beauty of Ballyvass, Castledermot and neighbouring areas. Your support can make a real difference.

Thank you from all of us at the

Ballyvass Biogas Concern Group