Chain saws from T & J Standish Sawmills in Co Offaly kept residents awake until after 1 a.m. on a Friday, it was claimed at the third day of a Bord Pleanála oral hearing yesterday.
The board was hearing an appeal by Friends of the Irish Environment and Aghancon Concerned Residents' Association against the decision by Offaly County Council to grant planning permission for the retention of the sawmills plant at Leap Castle, Co Offaly.
A worker at Standish Sawmills made a plea for the plant to be allowed remain open and said he and 50 other workers and their families depended on the sawmills for their livelihoods.
Mr Tom Standish, proprietor of the plant, traced the history of the sawmills and said he and his brother John had built the plant into an operation which employed 50 workers and played a vital role in an unemployment black spot.
Mr Michael Tierney, an archaeologist, said the sawmills, which are near Leap Castle, were an appropriate reminder of the activity around a castle in medieval times.
The hearing continues.