Loch side structures given green light at designated Fife nature site

Councillor David MacDiarmid (SNP) was the sole dissenting voice for two Kilconquhar planning applications at the North East planning committee on Wednesday. He sided with the nine public objections and asked the committee to refuse permission for both a shoreside jetty and water-side decking along the 46 hectare loch, which is a nationally designated Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

He was “very concerned” about the precedent one such jetty would set for the “wee bit of paradise in Kilconquhar.” He worried that other jetties would follow on the heels of this approval and have a detrimental effect on the loch’s wildlife. “The committee is not assessing the impact of 20 jetties. We are assessing the merits of this specific application. Others would be evaluated on a case by case basis,” planning officers clarified.

The structures are not the first standing along the shores of Kilconquhar. Some jetties have been long standing, and others more recent.

NatureScot which is responsible for protecting and preserving the SSSI, has since been formally consulted and it did not object. The government agency also fears it would cause more damage to the loch and wildlife to remove the piers than it would to leave it as it is.

However, the council received nine public objections – all of which raised concerns that more jetties and the increased use of craft on the loch will likely damage or disturb the loch’s ornithological and botanical interests and that this will have a detrimental effect on bird species which use the loch.

No other councillors objected to the developments and the committee approved the two structures.