Substation battle won but power row rumbles on in Lairg
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LAIRG residents have won a campaign to stop a massive electrical substation – the size of 10 football pitches – from being built close to homes in the village.
SHE Transmission, the company behind the project, has abandoned its original intention to build at Saval and has identified another site on the edge of the village at Dalchork instead.
However, residents are gearing up for a fresh fight over the route of a new overhead pylon line running from the planned substation to Loch Buidhe, north of Bonar Bridge.
SHE, part of the SSE Group and responsible for upgrading and maintaining the north’s transmission network, says a route suggested by the community to the east of the village has been discounted because it runs through land which is home to two protected species of birds.
Instead, it is understood that SHE is to route the line much closer to the village, although details have not been made available.
A public meeting into the issue is to be held at Lairg Community Centre on Thursday, 19th February, and it was also set to be discussed at a meeting of Lairg Community Council on Wednesday night.
The new substation and line are required because of the number of windfarms in the area which have substantially upped the amount of power being fed into the electricity grid.
Residents were horrified to learn that SHE was keen to build on the site of an existing substation on a prominent hillside at Saval, high above Loch Shin.
It was felt that the 310m x 238 structure, which would have had a 40-acre footprint, would dominate the village be too close to homes.
An action group, Community Action Lairg – Loch Buidhe (CALL) was formed to fight any attempt to build on the Saval site.
The community also identified a route for the pylons, which will be around 50ft high.
The company’s project manager, Andy McLaren said: “SHE Transmission is to pursue a substation site located on the edge of commercial forestry to the north of Lairg.”
But he added that engineering and environmental experts had been investigating routes for the pylon line and it was not intended to adopt the community’s preferred route.
He explained: “SHE Transmission has concluded that the alternative overhead line route suggested by local residents will not be taken forward.
“We understand that the outcome of our investigation will be disappointing to local residents.”
He said there were a “number of challenges” with the route, including the fact it passed through ground occupied by two protected species.
SHE will have to gain planning consent for the substation and overhead line.
Lairg Community Council chairman Sandy Allison said on Wednesday he had yet to be informed of SHE’s decision.
He admitted the location of the substation to the north of the village would be welcomed by the community.
But Mr Allison also vowed that SHE would be in for a battle if the proposed route of the pylon line ran anywhere near homes, businesses or crofts.
“I can’t really comment until I know exactly what the proposal is but the two routes previously put forward by SHE were unacceptable to the community,” he said.
“It seems that the line we wanted is going through land that is preferred for birds – are birds more important than people? It is certainly looking like that.”
