Tipperary TD encourages the public to get involved in bio-economy campus masterplan

Fianna Fáil TD and Chairperson of the Oireachtas Agriculture Committee, Jackie Cahill has called on local people to engage with the upcoming Lisheen National Bio-economy Campus Masterplan, which is due to commence its initial consultation process in the coming days.

“I have been working for a number of years now on the Lisheen site to ensure that we get employment and investment back into the area. We faced considerable difficulties when Tirlán decided not to progress with the biorefinery on site a number of years ago. At the time, some thought this would be the death knell of the biorefinery project in Lisheen, but I am glad to say that this is most definitely not the case," he said.

Deputy Cahill said that thanks to the assistance of Cllr Seamus Hanafin, Tipperary County Council had fully supported our work to get the Lisheen Bio-economy Campus back on track. Both Centenary Co-op and Tipperary County Council had invested in the Bioeconomy Campus in Lisheen.

"In late 2022, I announced that I had secured €1m from the Department of Agriculture for the campus in Lisheen. This work and investment has allowed the bio-economy campus to continue to the next stage and the next Government level investment," he said.

Just before Christmas, Deputy Cahill also confirmed that Lisheen was set to secure considerable investment under the Just Transition Fund. Deputy Cahill previously secured visits to the Lisheen site by the then-Taoiseach, Micheál Martin and the Minister for Agriculture, Charlie McConalogue.

“I have made it a priority for me to get investment and employment back into Lisheen. I worked hard to secure planning for the Naringtech BioProducts Campus in Lisheen, which is currently under construction and which will bring up to 30 jobs to the area once completed.

“Lisheen can and will be the centre of excellence for the Irish bio-economy and the future development of the circular economy. It can and will play a central role in the reduction of our carbon emissions as a country and I look forward to further developments and investment in this site and growing employment in the area in years to come," said Deputy Cahill.