Fuming protesters welcome halt in biomass plant plans

Published on Friday 22 April 2011 17:37

PROTESTERS against plans for a controversial £360- million biomass plant have welcomed a decision to put the project on hold for six months.

&#149 An artist's impression of Forth Energy's biomass plant in Leith, which will be discussed for a further six months

Developers Forth Energy said they wanted more time to consider arguments raised during the public consultation period.

But campaigners said the company had been stung by the level of opposition to the plant, with more than 1,000 objections from members of the public, as well as from local politicians and Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).

The city council has written to the Scottish Government asking for the six-month extension to the consultation period after Forth Energy asked that their planning application at Imperial Dock be put on hold.

According to John Bury, the council's head of planning, the company asked for more time "to consider the issues raised" by objectors, including SNH.

But Rob Kirkwood, of the Leith Links' Residents Association, said Forth Energy had been "overwhelmed" by the level of objections. He said: "It was a rushed project designed to make as much money as possible to compensate for the fall in land prices at the waterfront.

"They have come up against opposition from various quarters and they've been overwhelmed. Leith is no longer the soft touch it was in the past. We've got the sewage works and all kinds of unfriendly industries, which Edinburgh foisted on us, but we don't roll over anymore."

The 200-megawatt plant is expected to create between 500 and 700 jobs during construction and sustain a further 60 or so once operational.

Forth Energy, a partnership between Forth Ports and Scottish & Southern Energy, says the facility will provide renewable energy for 54 per cent of the Capital's electricity needs.

However, the proposals have come under fire from both locals and environmentalists due to Forth Energy's plans to bring most of the fuel - in the form of wood chip - from forests in North America.

Last month, US environmentalists wrote to the Scottish Government warning that Forth Energy's plans to build plants in Leith, Rosyth, Grangemouth and Dundee would have a "serious impact" on forests in Florida.

Leith councillor Gordon Munro said: "I think the response from statutory consultees may have taken Forth Energy by surprise."

Calum Wilson, managing director of Forth Energy, said the firm remained committed to bringing the plant to Leith.

He said: "Throughout the consultation period, we have listened to the views expressed by the public, by SNH and by (the council]. Following this process, we have agreed to a further short period of time to enable more consideration of the points raised."