Planning permission

Minister announces planning exemption for solar water heaters

On 4th November 2006, the Minister for the Environment announed changes to the exempted development provisions of the Planning and Development Regulations 2001, to facilitate installation of solar panels and wind turbines.

Those regulations came into law on 28th Feb 2007.

The exemptions mean that you do not have to apply for planning permission provided;

1) The panels do not exceed 12 sq M and do not take up more than half of the total roof space
2) They must be at least 50cm from the bottom edge of the roof
3) They can be on the front or back roof
4) Overall height above the roof must not exceed 15cm

If mounted on the ground, they must be no more than 2M high and must be behind the house.

For full details of the exemption, please click here