Mayo County Council has approved planning permission for Shell's onshore gas terminal as part of the €800 million Corrib gas field development.
The decision has been welcomed by Shell E&P Ireland, which is the major stakeholder in the venture.
The planning permission is subject to 75 conditions relating to roads and traffic, environment, health and safety, natural heritage and monitoring arrangements.
The decision is expected to be appealed by Mayo residents to An Bord Pleanála. Ms Maura Harrington, spokeswoman for residents, said the reaction was one of anger given the health and safety implications.
She was also critical of the timing of the county council's ruling just before a bank holiday weekend.
"Effectively it means they have denied us access to the decision until next Tuesday, unless we have a website connection," she said. Objectors have four weeks from yesterday to lodge an appeal.
SIPTU's offshore oil and gas committee spokesman, Mr Padhraig Campell, said the ruling represented "criminal lunacy" in the light of the recent landslides in north Mayo, close to the route of the onshore pipeline to the terminal.
Mayo County Council says it received more than 70 submissions and observations from the public and organisations since the latest in a series of planning applications was lodged by Shell on December 17th last.
The local authority says about 60 per cent of these were broadly in favour of the development, and about 40 per cent broadly opposed. It sought further information from the company on 28 subjects before issuing its ruling.
The planning permission covers two sites, the terminal or refinery site at Bellagelly South, Bellanaboy Bridge, and a peat deposit site 11km away in Srahmore and Attavally, close to Bangor Erris. The company plans to transfer 450,000 cubic metres of peat from Bellanaboy to Srahmore to overcome concerns raised in the ruling last April.
The ruling says the development would not seriously injure the visual amenities or landscape character of the area, or property values, and would not be prejudicial to public health.
Nor does it believe that it would endanger public safety, or be "otherwise contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area".
Last year a Bord Pleanála inspector said that the terminal would constitute a safety risk under the Seveso II directive,given its proximity to local houses, and would be visually obtrusive. It would also contravene the Mayo County Development Plan.
The 75 conditions cover road and traffic management during transfer of the peat to Srahmore,including setting a limit of 800 heavy traffic movements per day by commercial vehicle along the primary haul route.
The report says that a project committee should be established to monitor earthworks, surface water runoff, drainage control, traffic management and road maintenance, implementation of a landscape plan and other environmental issues.
The developer, Mayo County Council, the North-West Regional Fisheries Board, the Department of the Environment's heritage and planning division and the Environmental Protection Agency should be represented on this committee, which should be chaired by the Mayo county manager or his nominee, the ruling says.
Mr Andy Pyle, managing director of Shell E&P Ireland, said yesterday that the decision brought the company "one important step closer" to being able to develop the Corrib gas field and to deliver the benefits it would have to the western region.
"The availability of a supply of natural gas from Corrib will generate renewed confidence and help to attract new industry to the west of Ireland while providing significant benefits to the local and national economy," he said.
Mr Campbell said he was amazed the project had received approval after the landslides in the north Mayo area of last September. The economic benefits of the project were also questionable, he said, given the deal afforded to mineral exploration companies by the State.
