VILLAGE SHOP

Update from Tim James

Tarbert has for many years suffered a shortage of appropriate social, shared ownership, and affordable housing and even more so in recent years.

On the outskirts of Tarbert, there is an area (part of Escart Farm) that has been designated for housing on Argyll & Bute Council’s local development plan. Tarbert and Skipness Community trust need signatures of local residents from the PA29 postcode to demonstrate support for a community buyout project.

See the associated leaflet. If you are willing to sign in support of this much needed affordable housing contact Tim James. He needs to collect signatures by Monday 10th May.

Update from Tim James

The six Community Councils of the Kintyre Peninsula and the neighbouring South Knapdale Community Council are saying “Enough is Enough” in the face of increasing numbers of complex planning applications from windfarm developers which will more than double the number of operational windfarms on Kintyre and scar Kintyre’s wild and beautiful landscapes with clusters of gigantic 230 metre (750ft) wind turbines, with little regard for the people who live and work here.

“An Alarming Trend” - They have also seen an alarming trend among some developers who don’t want to pay communities the Scottish Government voluntary community benefit (£5,000 per megawatt installed per annum) or offer effective and fair community shared ownership schemes. These ‘recommended’ schemes need to become mandatory.

Legislation - Woefully inadequate and No Longer Fit for Purpose - The legislation that governs renewable energy developments and infrastructure (sections 36 and 37 of the Electricity Act 1989) results in applications that are incredibly lengthy; highly technical; full of jargon and technical concepts that are virtually impossible for community councillors to understand and evaluate. It only requires minimal community engagement by developers. It is woefully inadequate and is no longer fit for purpose. 

Jobs – From Hope to Despair - Kintyre’s wind turbine manufacturing plant at Machrihanish once offered the hope of 100+ skilled jobs to this economically challenged area. However, after changing owners several times it is now mothballed.

Windfarms offer few if any local jobs other than those created by our communities with Community Benefit Funding.

A Plan Of Action - The Combined Community Councils are asking the Scottish Government to implement a plan of action as follows:-

• All further wind farm development needs to be delayed while a study of the effects it is having on communities of the Kintyre Peninsula and South Knapdale is carried out.
• Community benefit and shared ownership must be made a mandatory requirement of all future planning proposals for windfarm development.
• The Scottish Government should revise section 36 and 37 of the Electricity Act 1989 to incorporate the standards of community engagement shown in the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015. 
• Funding to provide professional consultancy, should be made available to all Community Councils that are affected by section 36 and 37 applications.
• The Scottish Government must explore alternative arrangements for the re-opening of the Machrihanish wind turbine factory with a view to getting it back into full production at the earliest possible date.

Our Communities are asking  “Will the Scottish Government support these reasonable proposals and ensure a fairer balance between the needs for greener power and the needs of the remote and rural populations who live and work in the lands needed to generate it?”

 The North Kilbrannan Fish Farm beside Cour Bay is in the final stage of planning before Argyll and Bute Council decide whether to grant planning consent.  Public comments close this Friday.  We have obtained new evidence showing serious problems in the planning process. Please help us by submitting an objection and forward this article to anyone else who might want to help.  

We have commissioned a study which shows that azamethiphos and other pollution from the fish farm will flow into Cour Bay (see Cour_E_wind film below).  

Azamethiphos is an organophosphate poison which is very dangerous for humans (see attached Salmosan data sheet).  The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) have issued a CAR Licence which allows the fish farm to use azamethiphos and other chemicals, but they have admitted that they have not assessed the risk to humans swimming near the fish farm (see the EIR Freedom of Information Request below – bottom of page 2 and top of page 3). 

This means that SEPA have failed to comply with The Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulations 2011 which requires them to assess the impact on other marine users before issuing a CAR Licence.  

As a result, the Council may grant planning consent based on faulty and mis-leading evidence from the regulatory authorities. This problem also applies to every fish farm in Scotland which is near to other water users.  

The headline film with this article shows pollution and pink slime being pumped into the sea at the Carradale fish farm, in case you have never seen one in operation.

We need your help by objecting to the Council about the pollution from the fish farm, telling them that they must reject this fish farm on grounds of public safety and bad neighbour policy and if they don’t, it deserves to go to judicial review.

Objections need to be in your own words but please do give a reason to add weight to your objection there are some examples below you could select ones relevant to you:

• Local resident / regular visitor to the area & care about Scotland’s environment.
• SEPA has admitted that they did not assess the impact of organophosphates & other pollution on swimmers & other recreational users before they issued a CAR Licence for this fish farm.
• SEPA has failed to comply with the Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulations 2011 which requires them to assess the impact on other marine users before issuing a CAR Licence.
• You could reference the study which shows how pollution including organophosphates from the fish farm will accumulate in and around Cour Bay.
• Highlight that the product information for azamethiphos shows that it is hazardous to humans and should not be released into the environment.

Closing date for comments to Argyll and Bute Council is 19 Feb.  

Harry Nickerson, Cour Kintyre

 As our local community councillor Tim James has brought this proposed development to our attention as it directly affects Skipness.  It is in early scoping phase at present but it is important any community response engages as soon as possible. The deadline for consultation passed on 05 of June however Tim has managed to get an extension until 27 June.  This is not far away now so anyone with thoughts should forward them to Tim who alongside Rupert is putting together a response.

Please read the proposal information provided in the specific  information point below this notice, discuss and provide responses to Tim. For speed and due to COVID-19 I have created an online response form. For those whose emails we have I have emailed this form to you, otherwise please click the link on the right to complete it.

Please note your responses and comments and any contact information you provide will be made available to Tim to use in his response, alternatively you can email him using tim@skipnesssmokehouse.com .

Under regulation 12, Scottish Ministers are required to provide a scoping opinion outlining the information they consider should be included in the EIA report.  Ministers are also required to consult the relevant consultation bodies and any other interested party which is likely to have an interest in the proposed development by reason of its specific environmental responsibilities or local and regional competencies.

(Adapted for our purpose)

To allow Scottish Ministers to provide a comprehensive scoping opinion, we are being asked to review the scoping report and advise on our concerns of the scope of the environmental impact assessment for this proposal (directly below).  In our response we should include any further matters we would like Ministers to highlight for consideration and inclusion in the assessment, particularly site specific information.