‘I will always remember driving up the Cousane Gap for the first time,’ smiles Virginie Laveau.
‘Coming up to it from Cork, it is a lunar landscape – dried grasses, waterways running down the hill and sheep spread across the land.
‘Slowly reaching the top of this very steep hill and finally reaching the most amazing lush patchwork of green fields… I was in awe.’
The French native first moved to Ireland in October 1999 and instantly lost her heart to the wild terrain and unspoilt beauty of West Cork.
She told The Southern Star: ‘Fast forward 15 years and I fell in love with a derelict stone cottage. Finally, in 2022, my dreams came true and this derelict cottage became mine. I have spent the last two and a half years restoring my beloved cottage, surrounded by the Cousane Gap, Coomclogh, in the heart of Maughanaclea. ‘Cleaning the walls, repointing the inside and outside walls, and having to pinch myself every day for such luck in finding this paradise.’
Now Virginie is one of a tight-knit community who have rallied together to set up an online fund, Stop the Spin, to fight plans for 14 wind turbines which would reach 169m in height and, it is feared, overshadow Bantry Bay.
Campaigners are opposed to what they describe as an industrial scale wind farm, proposed by Enerco Energy, will herald the irreversible destruction of their landscape forever.
Virginie Laveau has undertaken the renovation of her old stone cottage in Maughanaclea herself.
Virginie has poured her heart and soul into her beloved cottage. She explained: ‘I am so connected to this land, I spend so much time admiring it and watching the landscape colours changing with the hours of the day. I have created a round window on my northern wall, so I can sit inside and soak in the stunning hills of Maughanaclea.
‘A dream…… until I saw the Enerco wind farms development plans. It was like the death notice of my own dream. This is not possible, you cannot do this to this valley.
‘It is a precious mix of wildlife whether in the air or on the ground. We are all living quietly with nature. A lot of us here are self-sufficient… solar panels and our own wells. Accepting this project would mean destroying the calmness and wildness of the valley. I will do everything I can to protect this wild landscape of Maughanaclea, West Cork.’
Stop the Spin cites several wind farm proposals in recent years that were rejected by Cork County Council. Its biggest fear is that the Enerco plan, which will go directly to An Comisuin Pleanala (former An Bord Pleanala) will be ruled on based on outdated legislation which was enacted in 2006.
West Cork archaeologist Tony Miller told this newspaper: ‘The Shehy Mountains, Mealagh and Maughanaclea areas are well known for the concentration of prehistoric monuments found in the landscape. These include wedge tombs and an important cluster of Bronze Age stone circles.’
Enerco Energy spokesman Padraig Quille said the company had consulted extensively with the local community, adding: ‘We intend another public information exhibition before the application is lodged.’
