Warehouse enviro report not necessary
A warehouse planned for the Eastern Villages as part of a £40million whisky enterprise won’t need a specialist environmental report say planners.
Ian Macleod Distillers (IMD) recently submitted a PAN (Proposal of Application Notice), a precursor to the potential submission of a formal planning application, to Stirling Council planners for a whisky maturation warehouse scheme at Bandeath Industrial Estate in Throsk near Fallin.
Now, in response to a screening opinion requested by the company, planners say any application submitted won’t require an Environmental Impact Assessment although other details reports will be expected.
The project involves the building of maturation warehousing for the storage and maturation of whisky casks, associated blend centre, tank farm and offices, associated landscaping, access, parking, SUDS, drainage and associated works on vacant land south west of Bandeath Dog Kennels and north west of Throsk House.
In a decision issued this week, the planners said:“the proposed development... is unlikely to result in effects on the environment which are sufficiently significant to require the submission of an EIA Report.
“Any planning application will however require to be supported by reports and studies covering a range of relevant planning and environmental topics, including a design statement, noise, emissions, ecology, geo-technical, drainage, flood risk and traffic and transport.”
The developers are said to have already undertaken initial investigations to identify the site suitability including assessing a range of environmental constraints such as habitat, flood risk and trees.
In their scoping request decision, council planners said the development would be of comparable scale to that of the wider industrial estate but that cumulative impacts were not considered to be significant and no significant amount of waste would be produced.
They added:“the construction of the proposed development is not considered to cause any significant vibration, noise or light. The risk of accidents is considered to be low if the operation is appropriately managed.
“The proposed site is allocated for employment use in the Stirling Local Development Plan and is part of the wider Bandneath Industrial Estate, designated as an employment safeguarding area.
“Part of site identified as at risk to flooding, however anticipated Flood Risk Assessment will identify appropriate mitigation. Part of site is within a sensitive area (ie Firth of Forth Special Protection Area and Special Site of Scientific Interest) however anticipated at this stage direct and indirect effects unlikely to be significant, in any event the proposal will require a Habitats Regulations Appraisal.”
The 10th largest Scotch whisky company, IMD identified the 8.2-hectare site (20.2 acres) as a suitable location to deliver a maturation warehouse scheme, providing additional capacity for its operations across Scotland.
Warehouse buildings will store casks, allowing the whisky to slowly mature for several years prior to it being sold in bulk or as cased goods.
The warehouses will hold casks from all of Ian Macleod’s distilleries, which are Rosebank in Falkirk, Glengoyne distillery in Stirlingshire, and Tamdhu distillery at Knockando on Speyside.