The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Village multi-million-pound flood defence scheme taking shape
The banks of the River Almond are being transformed as Perth and Kinross Council works to ensure that Almondbank is protected from flooding.
The multimillion-pound second phase of the hugely ambitious flood defence scheme has been under construction for almost six months.
It is the council’s response to the deluges that devastated the community in past years.
Almondbank has experienced a history of flooding from the River Almond and East Pow Burn, with serious flooding taking place in 1993, 1999 and, more recently, in January 2011.
In order to mitigate flooding in the area, Balfour Beatty is currently constructing a series of flood defences along the river and burn.
A temporary flood storage area is also being created on the playing fields at Main Street.
The works have proved controversial in recent weeks, following the announcement of the 18-week closure of the main road through Lochty.
It has forced Almondbank residents to undertake a sixmile round trip into Perth and there has been criticism that it has funnelled traffic past the village’s primary school.
While plans for the flood defence scheme were the subject of consultation, locals said they had been kept in the dark about the closure.
The council has said the closure is essential to allow work to proceed on the flood protection scheme.
The overall works are due to be completed in spring 2018 at a cost of £14.7 million, more than £11 million of which comes from the Scottish Government.