The National Roads Authority and Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council have resumed work at the controversial ruins of Carrickmines Castle in south Dublin.
A team of archaeologists moved onto the medieval site this morning to prepare for the removal of the Castle's stone perimeter wall and clear the way for the completion of the M50 motorway.
Last week the High Court lifted an injunction placed against the NRA and the Council which had prevented them from conducting any work at the ruins of the site.
Protestors, who want to keep the Castle site intact, had told the Court they were going to bring new legal proceedings and later warned against any resumption of work.
The key focus of the work will be on investigating what is underneath the Glenamuck Road, which runs through the Castle site, before clearing the way for actual road construction of the M50. The motorway is due to be completed by September 2005.
Conservationist Ruadhan MacEoin said he was shocked at the resumption of the work given the revelations on Prime Time last Thursday over an EU-commissioned report into the Environmental Impact Statement.
Mr MacEoin suggested that the section of the M50 interchange - which would run through the Carrickmines Castle site – did not have proper planning permission.
