Issue - meetings

Report by Head of Planning and Regulatory Services

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting and introductions were made.  The Head of Governance and Law outlined the procedure that would be followed and those who wished to speak were identified.  Mr Reppke advised that a letter had been received from Mr and Mrs Rutherford advising that they were unable to attend.  They asked that their continued opposition to the mast be noted at the meeting.  A copy of this letter was circulated to the Committee. 

Planning

Peter Bain spoke to the terms of the report on behalf of the Head of Planning and Regulatory Services.  He advised that this was a local detailed application for the temporary installation of a 60m high anemometer mast on the island of Orsay, off Portnahaven, for the purposes of wind data collection in connection with the prospective Islay offshore wind farm currently being devised by the Applicants, Scottish & Southern Energy.  He advised that the offshore wind farm was a project recognised by the government as being one of national importance. It had yet to be consented and wind resource information formed part of the company’s project appraisal for the purposes of the application for consent for the wind farm, which would be considered by the government rather than the Council under the provision of the Electricity Act.  He advised that this application for the anemometer mast sought permission for a 6 year period but the applicants have indicated their willingness for this to be restricted to a minimum period of 4 years if Members felt that it was inappropriate to consent it for a longer period.

He referred to a number of slides and showed a picture of Orsay viewed from between the adjacent and overlooking villages of Portnahaven and Port Wemyss at a distance of some 350m.   He advised that the island was uninhabited with the only structure of significance being the Category A listed Lighthouse, the presence of which has contributed to what was regarded by many as the iconic status of this small island. The island location also provided the setting for the remains of St Oran’s chapel which was designated a category B listed building and a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

He advised that Orsay island was an area of ‘sensitive countryside’ delineated by the local plan shown here in light green.   He advised that the red stripes on the plan denoted that the area was also subject to a Site of Special Scientific Interest designation.  The effect of policy STRAT DC 5 in combination with local plan policy LP CST 2 is to confer ‘undeveloped coast’ status on the island.  It also lay within a wider local plan designated Area of Panoramic Quality giving effect to the provisions of policy LP ENV 10. 

He referred to a further extract from the local plan which showed the island in the context of the adjoining settlements at Portnahaven and Port Wemyss and advised that both of these settlements have conservation area status giving effect to local plan policy LP ENV 14.  He advised that Structure Plan Policy prescribes those forms of development which may be considered favourably in the context of sensitive countryside designations.   He advised that the mast did not fall within any of these categories of development so could only be approved as a minor departure to development plan policy. He advised that Development plan policy provided that prospective exceptions to policy in sensitive countryside required to be evaluated by way of an Area Capacity Evaluation or ACE and he reminded Members that at the last meeting in June, prior to consideration of the application details, the ACE previously circulated was endorsed by the committee as a material consideration in the determination of this application.  He advised that the ACE process identified that the island was characterised by its exposed setting, a level plateau of open grassland, open views from facing settlements with those views being dominated by the presence of the listed lighthouse.  He advised that the ACE concluded that there would be little if any capacity to absorb new development successfully and that there were no more appropriate locations on the island for the development than that which has been proposed by the Applicant.  The advised that the mast would be twice the height of the lighthouse and its presence would temporarily adversely affect landscape character.   It would detract from the scale of the lighthouse and would intrude on its setting as a listed building.  It would also detract from the settings of the Portnahaven and Port Wemyss conservation areas.  He advised that the development as proposed would therefore have adverse consequences for landscape character and the historic environment and would not satisfy development plan policy as a consequence.  He advised that the ACE which had been previously adopted must now be regarded as a material consideration in the determination of this application.  Its effect was that the development must be regarded as having an adverse environmental impact and that there were no other sequentially preferable locations on the island, as any prospective alternatives would share the same shortcomings as the application site currently proposed.  He advised that the issue in this case therefore became whether development for a temporary period supporting the delivery of a national interest project, despite lack of support by the development plan, the identified impacts on its surroundings, and the extensive opposition by third parties, ought to be approved on a locational need basis, supported by the Applicants’ contention that this is the only technically feasible location available to them onshore for the purposes of monitoring the wind resource in relation to the proposed offshore windfarm project.

Mr Bain then ran through a selection of plans and slides submitted by the Applicant which showed the location of the mast and Orsay island within the wider locality, the exact location of the met mast and its intended location some 200m South East of the lighthouse.  He advised that the proposed meteorological mast was a slender, guyed pole structure of 60m  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3