Yes, that's a whole lot of exclamation marks there, but with good reason, I think.
I've just received a letter from the Perth and Kinross Council informing me that the Allt Cailliche Hydropower Scheme for Glen Lyon has been withdrawn.
I'm not sure if that means that the hydroscheme has been given up on entirely, or if there may be a revised application lodged in future, I've not found anything online about this yet. For now, though, it seems that the future of Tigh nam Bodach is a bit brighter than it was when the application was first lodged.
I'll keep a look out for any news on this, but at the moment I'm just so pleased and relieved that this has had a happy ending. It might just be the first hurdle, but for now I'll take the good news happily and celebrate.
Oh, good news! I hope it doesn't mean future attempts, but if so hopefully those will be even more quickly thwarted.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely.
ReplyDeleteAt the moment I've no idea why the application was withdrawn - whether it was the level of objections received, or cost, or whatever.
If the council demanded radical changes to the plans I'm not sure if that means the application would have to be resubmitted or not, so there could be something else submitted in future. Or they might look to somewhere nearby. There would still be concerns then - environmental on the one hand again, but also for the shrine. If access was opened up in the area even a little it could still be potentially damaging. Its remoteness is what keeps the shrine safe.
EXCELLENT news! :D Someone made a wise decision, that's for sure. I definitely wouldn't want to piss off the Grandmother of that land.
ReplyDeleteMe neither! I was hoping to manage a visit there this summer, but alas...At least now the plans have been withdrawn there's not such a hurry to get there.
ReplyDeleteHello again
ReplyDeleteI got a letter too and must admit it raised my spirits, although the old cynic in me did wonder if it was just a ploy from the developer.
I kept an eye on the planning website and there was a long delay waiting for various consultation reports. The last one to come in was from Scottish national heritage and it raised major concerns about the environmental impact the hydro scheme and its construction would have in Glen Calliche.
It looks like the planning officer then advised them to drop this scheme so there would be more chance for the other schemes in less sensitive locations.
Reading the withdrawl letter it does look like they have fully withdrawn the application, - not just for a redesign.
".....however we have taken note of the considerable concern expressed by the local community and council regarding the particular sensitivites of this site and a decision made to withdraw the application"
Regards
The Yorkshireman
PS
Sorry about the long URL but you can see the letter from mott macdonald 2/9/2011 here
http://193.63.61.24/WAM133/doc/Correspondence-405715.pdf?extension=.pdf&id=405715&location=VOLUME1&contentType=application/pdf&pageCount=1
Ahh, thank you! The letter I got didn't explain anything, other than they had withdrawn the application. I've been looking for something like this and couldn't find anything. Good to see that they're taking on board the strength of feeling from the public, though I do hope that any other sites they might choose will be far more appropriate than this one.
ReplyDeleteI saw the report from Scottish National Heritage and it did raise my hopes about a positive outcome. I was very pleased to see they gave such a thorough response!