It comes as a solar farm is proposed for Maganey
An Athy councillor has called for agricultural sites to not be used as locations for commercially generated solar energy.
Speaking on Kildare Today, Fianna Fáil Councillor for Athy MD Veralouise Behan said the area is "hugely dependent" on agriculture:
"It's important that we keep agricultural land for agricultural production, we're hugely dependent on agriculture [in Athy], we only have 5 per cent of industrial zoned sites in the county."
Cllr Behan compared this to Naas and Newbridge that have 60 per cent, and Clane and Maynooth at 26 per cent.
"I feel it's more appropriate to have industrial lands for industrial solar parks and not farmlands for industrial solar parks across the county. It's important we preserve what we have agriculturally."
She also cited that there aren't any existing Government policies regarding where solar farms are specifically located, while adding that green energy is important, but needs to be used appropriately:
"It's important to make the point that green energy is important, but it needs to be done correctly, not at the expense of rural food production, last summer that was down by 40 per cent."
The full interview can be heard below:
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