Communications equipment on Camlough Mountain is to be upgraded to ensure “continued coverage” for emergency services in the event of power cuts, storm damage or vandalism.
The Home Office has written to Newry, Mourne and Down District Council as part of a planning application lodged to ensure the necessary work is carried out.
All of the works will needed will be carried out within an existing fenced compound.
The application – by Reading-based Cellnex UK Ltd, involves the installation of a new 10kVA generator on a concrete foundation. A power duct will be installed between the power source and generator, together with a wide cable tray mounted on a concrete base.
It further seeks permission that an “AMF panel will be installed on a new pole fixed to the cabin base, while the existing Eltek PSU cabinet will be retained”.
According to the Home Office it, in partnership with Government departments and others, is replacing Airwave, the current communications system used by the emergency services.
The new Emergency Services Network (ESN), it says, will be a “critical voice and broadband data communication system running over mobile network”.
A key requirement of ESN is that it continues to provide coverage for the three emergency services – locally the PSNI, Fire Service and Ambulance Service – when the service is “impacted by events”.
The Home Office has advised council of a requirement for “additional power to increase resilience of the network”.
To achieve this, EE have been instructed to install new back-up permanent power generators on around 2000 sites across their network – including that in Camlough.
A supporting statement further explains: “The amount of development, its design and the location of the equipment at this
existing electronic communications site has been guided by the technical and operational requirements of providing back-up power supply having proper regard to minimise appearance.
“The emergency services communications network needs to be operational on a continuous basis and therefore it is essential that the site benefits from an emergency ‘back up’ power supply in case the main grid power supply to the site fails. In practice, therefore, the back-up generator will only be needed in an emergency situation, for example, if the existing high-power supply to the site is lost.
“This minor proposal will provide a back-up emergency power supply for the Emergency Services network and will therefore support the efficiency of the Emergency Services by allowing them to maintain access to the latest type of data and applications as part of the EE Ltd service provided to the wider area.”
“The proposal is for the upgrade of an existing telecommunications site. The application site has hosted a telecommunications site for a number of years.
“The proposal will ensure that power resilience is achieved at this site so that the area does not suffer a catastrophic loss of Emergency Services Network and the EE public coverage in the event of a mains power outage.
“The proposed generator is the minimum requirement to achieve the required power resilience. It will be located within the existing fenced compound alongside the existing equipment cabinets/cabins.
“Having regard to the nature and appearance of the structure as a whole, the proposed works should have no adverse impact, or no more than a minimal adverse impact, on its appearance. The proposal should not materially affect the overall appearance of. the existing site to any noticeable or adverse degree from any public vantage points.
“The proposal is for the upgrade of an existing site and as such, no alternative site options were investigated. There is a specific requirement to upgrade the existing site as it is the only site in the appropriate location to provide coverage to the wider area, and the upgrade is required to provide power resilience.”
The application will now be advertised shortly and the council has been asked to consider it an “expeditious manner”.
