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To: The NI Executive, DfI, DAERA, NIEA, and all local councils must act now to protect AONBs, ban peatland destruction, halt new wind farms in protected areas, and launch an independent inquiry into energy planning.
Protect Northern Ireland’s AONBs No More Wind Farms in Protected Landscapes
Petition: Protect Northern Ireland’s AONBs No More Wind Farms in Protected Landscapes
Stop the Industrialisation of Our Most Precious Places
We are calling on the Northern Ireland Executive, Department for Infrastructure (DfI), and all planning authorities to immediately:
Ban all new wind farm development in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs)
Our AONBs exist to safeguard the beauty, biodiversity, cultural heritage, and tranquillity of Northern Ireland’s landscapes. They are not energy zones. Wind farms are industrial developments and they do not belong in protected areas.
The Sperrins AONB is already saturated with wind turbines, powerlines, and grid infrastructure. New proposed developments like Mullaghclogher (The Moat) are now targeting the very heart of these landscapes. If this continues, no AONB will be safe - not the Mournes, the Glens, nor the Causeway Coast.
Introduce full legal protection for peatlands with NO mitigation exceptions
Peatlands are critical carbon sinks, rich ecosystems, and water regulators. Allowing thousands of tonnes of peatland to be excavated and then “mitigated” elsewhere is a dangerous loophole that results in irreversible damage. There must be a total ban on infrastructure that requires peatland disturbance, drainage, or displacement.
Suspend all new wind farm applications in AONBs until a full independent inquiry is held
We demand a full, independent inquiry into how Northern Ireland’s energy strategy is being implemented and how AONBs and other protected landscapes have been opened up to industrial energy development without strategic planning, cumulative assessment, or democratic accountability.
We stand for:
• Nature-based, diverse, and decentralised energy solutions
• Real protection for our designated landscapes and communities
• A truly just transition, not one led by developers and short term interests
We call on the Executive to:
-Place an immediate moratorium on wind farm applications in AONBs
-Legislate for a peatland protection framework with zero tolerance for mitigation-based loss
-Initiate an independent inquiry into energy infrastructure planning across Northern Ireland
Why is this important?
Northern Ireland’s AONBs are being sacrificed to industrial wind farms. If we don’t act, the landscapes we love—our peatlands, wildlife, and heritage—will be lost forever to short-term interests and irreversible damage.
If you care about nature, climate justice, and democracy, this affects you. Together we can demand real protection for AONBs, a fairer energy future, and stop developers from deciding the fate of our most precious places.