Four community councils have joined forces to try to block plans for a battery storage plant in Inverness.
Slackbuie, Inshes and Milton of Leys, Lochardil and Drummond and Holm Community Councils, representing more than 13,700 residents, are urging councillors to vote against the proposed development next week.
The £40 million project would see containers storing up to 50MW of electricity sited at Fairways Business Park.
Initially put forward by Inverness Caledonian Thistle (ICT) shirt sponsors Intelligent Land Investments (ILI), the project is wholly owned by the football club.
Why is next week’s vote important?
Highland Council’s south planning applications committee (SPAC) voted 3-2 last month to grant permission against officials’ recommendations.
A report to the committee said the council’s environmental health officer and ecology officer had removed their objections.
But it said the plans did not adequately justify the loss of designated open space.
Since then the proposal has been put in doubt by a move to have the decision reconsidered at the full council meeting on March 14.
A notice of amendment has been signed by 30 councillors.
Ahead of the crucial council vote, pressure is being ramped up by supporters and opponents of the scheme.
ICT called a meeting of fans and sponsors this week to outline their case.
It urged supporters to contact councillors to back the scheme.
Chairman Ross Morrison said a legal challenge may even prevent next week’s vote going ahead.
He said the project would take up just four acres of a 200-acre site and would have no visual of audible impact on any house.
It would also save 20,000 tonnes of Co2 a year, equivalent to planting one million trees.
‘Unjustifiable’ loss of green space
However, Inshes and Milton of Leys Community Council have started a petition to try to stop the project, which has been signed by about 140 people.
Now, with the three other community councils, it has outlined its opposition in a document – entitled Keep Fairways Green – which has been sent to councillors.
They say the battery energy storage scheme (BESS) would mean an “unjustifiable” loss of open green space, protected by the Inner Moray Firth Local Development Plan (IMFDLP2).
The community councils also claim BESS guidelines mean plans for the site has “multiple unresolvable safety issues”.
“Lithium BESS is hazardous heavy industry and is a high risk to the local communities because of the close proximity to housing, schools, offices and retail”, they say.
“These risks should not be tolerated.
“Early findings of the Grenfell public inquiry tell us that gaps in legislation, poorly policed statutory obligations, and disconnects between building control and fire rescue can lead to horrific outcomes.”
ICT has said it would receive a £3.4 million lump sum from selling the battery company to an undisclosed buyer.
This would be used to help secure Caley Thistle’s future and support community programmes.
‘Once in a lifetime opportunity’ for club
Mr Morrison said it was a “once in a lifetime” opportunity which would present the club with “difficulties in surviving” if rejected.
But, in their presentation, the community councils say: “The financial sustainability of any organisation should rely on it having sound business models, not attempting to compromise planning approval processes.”
They add: “We sincerely hope that our councillors chose to listen to the voters who put their faith in them and elected them as their representatives.”
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