Plans for Mulranny community energy project

PLANS for the Mulranny decarbonising zone include the development of a community energy project - a 10MW AgroPV farm.

Smarter travel is also a key aspect of the project, which aims to reduce green house emissions in the village by 51% by 2030.

This will include making the greenway more accessible, reducing short car journeys, while an electric bike scheme is currently being developed powered by renewable energy from PV panels on the tourist office.

Mulranny is already a leader in the field of sustainability. One very successful local enterprise, for example, is the Gift of Hands where leftover wool from the Foxford Woollen Mills is upcycled by local crafters and sold to fund local community-led developments.

Councillors in the Westport-Belmullet Municipal District received a presentation on the decarbonising zone at their monthly meeting from Sean Carolan who said the village has been working on sustainability and biodiversity for a number of years. For example, nature-based solutions have been employed along the coastline for a number of years, bringing about positive change.

Mulranny was one of 10 Mayo communities to apply to be Mayo’s first decarbonising zone.

Selected as a resilient, vibrant and sustainable community on a pathway to zero carbon emissions, it will now become an exemplar site for the rest of the county, leading the way for other Mayo communities seeking to decarbonise.

There are 10 themes in the Mulranny plan, the first being community buy-in, including economic opportunities. Also featuring are regenerative farming and a thriving biosphere – nature-based solutions such as carbon sequestration.

Mulranny NS and St. Brendan's Village are key social anchor institutions and the committee are looking to support them in terms of PV power. By delivering a 10 megawatt AgroPV farm, they could supply power to 2,000 homes.

This, said Mr. Carolan, is the type of scheme they need to be delivering on rapidly to achieve the ultimate goal there.

There is big interest in the decarbonising zone in Mulranny and application has been made for Creative Ireland funding.

Councillor Paul McNamara congratulated the community on an excellent job on what is an ambitious project.

Noting their track record in delivering environmentally, Councillor Peter Flynn said how the village has been developed in recent years is a template for every village to develop in a smart and sustainable way.