Hydro project to be ‘catastrophic’
Business owners on Loch Lochy fear their livelihoods are at stake if proposals to build Scotland’s largest hydro power scheme go ahead as planned.
William Schroeder and Brian Heys, owners of Great Glen Lodges at Kilfinnan near Laggan, have expressed fears that the Coire Glas hydro scheme, proposed by energy supplier SSE, could be ‘catastrophic’ for their business.
With the prospect of 3.9 million tonnes of rock needed to be excavated from the site, early estimations project that an HGV lorry will have to pass within 10 metres of their property every three minutes, every day for up to seven years.
‘Our business and home are located within the site boundaries of the Coire Glas project, and we stand to lose our livelihood if the project goes ahead as planned,’ they said.
Their concerns follow the decision of Highland Council’s south planning committee on Tuesday not to raise objections to SSE’s application to the Scottish Government for consent to increase capacity of the Coire Glas scheme.
However, councillors had serious concerns about the scale of the project’s spoil management plan, considering the amount of rock that will need to be excavated and transported off-site for the scheme to be built. ‘The issue of spoil management and rock extraction – that’s all on our road specifically,’ said Mr Schroeder. ‘That’s the only was into our property and therefore it’s the only way our clients can come here at all. If there are HGVs on the road every day, that will have a catastrophic impact on us.’
It was stated at the meeting on Tuesday that 1,200 tonnes of rock will need to be transported from the site each day by road and potentially 3,000 tonnes a day transported by barge down the Caledonian Canal at the height of construction. That would mean 40 months of rock extraction alone without delays, not including the thousands of tonnes of timber that need to be extracted.
Councillor Denis Rixson said that, although the application should be recommended, planners should consider the impact on people who live in the area. ‘The effect on tourist interests will be at best severe and at worst catastrophic,’ he said. ‘How will people want to stay in that part of the Highlands if there are thousands of tons or rock being extracted each day?’
Councillor Ben Thompson says he ‘fully supports’ the scheme but understands the objections from residents in Kilfinnan.
‘We were satisfied with how our ward councillors raised our concerns,’ continued Mr Schroeder. ‘We’ve met them on a number of occasions and we feel they listened to us.’
He added: ‘Our main concern is that we are not overlooked entirely.’
Great Glen Lodges has operated at Kilfinnan for around for 40 years and, together with neighbouring businesses, attracts well over 1,000 visitors annually.
On the issue of compensation, Mr Schroeder is ‘shocked’ that the issue hasn’t been raised at all, even at this early stage.
‘SSE refuses to discuss even the idea of compensation with us,’ he continued. ‘It also refuses to discuss it with our MSP, Kate Forbes.’