BOARD MEMBERS

Method of appointment of Board Members.

The Chairperson is appointed by the Government from a list of candidates selected  by an  independent committee in accordance with section 105 of the 2000 Act, chaired by the President of the High Court. The Government is generally required to make the appointment from among not more than three persons selected by that committee and found by them to be suitable for appointment. The Chairperson of the Board normally holds office for seven years and may be re-appointed for a second or subsequent term of office provided he or she is Chairperson at the time of the re-appointment.

The Planning and Development Acts 2000 to 2011 provide for the appointment of nine other members of the Board. Eight of the members are appointed by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government from among persons selected from four groups of organisations prescribed by regulations and representative of :

• Professions or occupations that relate to physical planning, engineering and architecture. 
• Organisations concerned with economic development, the promotion and carrying out of development, the   provision of  infrastructure or the development of land or otherwise connected  with the construction industry.
• Organisations representative of local government,  farming and trade unions. 
• Organisations representative of persons concerned with the  protection and preservation of the environment and of amenities/voluntary bodies and bodies having charitable objects /rural and local community development, the promotion of the Irish language or the promotion of heritage, the arts and culture/bodies representative of people with disabilities / bodies   representive of young people. 

The other member is appointed by the Minister from among persons who in the Minister's opinion have satisfactory experience, competence or qualifications as respects issues relating to the environment and sustainability. These members normally hold office for a term of five years and may be re-appointed for a second or subsequent term provided that the person concerned is an outgoing member at the time of the re-appointment. As of December 2011, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government has initiated the process of seeking nominations for appointment of new ordinary Board Members and this page will be updated shortly when any such appointments are made.

Members of the Board

Dr Mary Kelly was appointed Chairperson of the Board in August 2011.  She had been the Director General of the Environmental Protection Agency since May 2002.  She holds a PhD in Chemistry from Trinity College Dublin, and an MBA from Dublin City University.  Mary previously worked with IBEC, the Irish Business and Employers Confederation, where she was responsible for environmental policy, and before that in the pharmaceutical industry.  She was elected to membership of the Royal Irish Academy in 2008 and has served on the Council of the Academy.
Mary MacMahon was appointed to the Board for the period 27th November, 2006 until 26th November, 2011. She was reappointed for a further two year term until 26th November, 2013. She holds a Masters Degree in Town and Country Planning from Queen's University, Belfast. She worked as a planning consultant in the private sector and was a member of the Aquaculture Licences Appeals Board.
Conall Boland was appointed to the Board for the period 1st January , 2007 until  31st December, 2011.He was reappointed for a further two year term until 31st of December, 2013. He is a graduate in Civil Engineering from Trinity College, Dublin and holds a DEA in Civil Engineering from the ENS Cachan, France. He also holds a Masters Degree in Spatial Planning from the Dublin Institute of Technology. Prior to his appointment to the Board he was Technical Director with RPS Consulting Engineers. He is a chartered member of the Institution of Engineers of Ireland.
Fionna O’ Regan was appointed to the Board for a five-year period until 6th February 2016. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering and a Master’s Degree in Engineering Science, both from UCC. Prior to her appointment to the Board she worked for over ten years with Fehily Timoney & Company, the past eight of which were spent as a Principal Engineer with the firm. Fionna previously worked with the Renewable Energy Information Office of the Irish Energy Centre, and prior to that with a renewable energy development company. Fionna has 15 years’ experience in renewable energy, principally in project development, planning and environmental impact assessment.  She is a chartered member of the Institution of Engineers of Ireland.