Planning officials are directing councillors to approve a controversial substation at a tranquil spot that locals argue would harm local waterways and environmentally important peatbog.
SHE-Transmission’s proposal for the facility at Garbole near Tomatin will be considered at a special council meeting on September 9.
The debate will follow a site visit and also decide on a proposed connecting powerline to the Knocknagael substation about 11 miles north.
Residents have urged councillors to consider an alternative option.
A spokesman for power giant SSE said: “We’ve gone through a rigorous development process before submitting the proposal taking into account technical, environmental and economic considerations while listening to the views from the public.”
Pat Wells of the Save Strathdearn Campaign was shocked that officers had recommended approval of the substation.
“Local residents and Strathdearn Community Council maintain their objections to the favoured ‘site five’ in Garbole Wood,” she said.
“The site has a rich biodiversity and the area around Garbole is steeped in history.
“We maintain the alternative site, proposed by the campaign, in a hollow on the moor at the southern end of the Farr Windfarm, is much less sensitive and would result in less visual intrusion from key locations in Strathdearn.”
Garbole has played a significant role in the glen’s history and attracts hundreds of visitors each year to enjoy the scenery and local wildlife.
The council papers state that no part of the site is covered by any international, national, regional or local landscape designations.
Campaigners, however, say that an independent scientific study of the proposed site points to evidence of many more species of plants, mammals and birds than acknowledged by the developer including “several ‘red’ declared species.”
Objectors to the planning application have urged councillors to consider a separate “site six” option in a hollow over the hill from Garbole which already has a track to the approved Farr Windfarm extension.
