Highland Council insists bottle banks will return to original site in North Kessock despite objections from North Kessock Ticket Office Project
A NORTH Kessock bottle bank is to return to its original location, despite local opposition.
The long-running row took a new turn this month when residents were informed that the bins would be moving back to the Old Ticket Office.
Recycling banks were first removed from beside the former ferry ticket office while it was undergoing a major refurbishment for a new community project.
It was agreed at a community meeting that they would temporarily move to the nearby Ferry Brae car park until the renovation was complete, after which they would be returned to the new North Kessock Ticket Office Project (NKTOP) with discreet screening.
A Highland Council spokeswoman said: “Regarding bottle banks in North Kessock, the council has reviewed all the information and assessed the situation, and the council believes that the bottle banks should be returned to the central location where they have been for 20 years.”
Reasons behind the decision over the move were given as: it was the best location as it was central, it was the consensus reached by a public meeting in autumn 2017 and it was agreed as part of the development of the North Kessock Ticket Office Project site that the bottle banks would be returned.
The spokeswoman added: “In recognition of the concerns of some local residents, the council has agreed that screening should be constructed to help mitigate the sight and sound of the bottle banks. This will be sympathetic to the design of the seaside garden and the screening will be put in place prior to the bottle banks being reinstated. Black Isle councillors have earmarked £5000 from the Black Isle ward discretionary budget towards the costs of the screening.”
However, organisers behind the newly-opened coastal garden, which is next to the NKTOP, claim the sounds of recycling glass will shatter the area’s atmosphere and the £5000 could be better spent elsewhere.
Maggie MacDonald, NKTOP chairwoman, said: “The screening might mitigate the sight but it will not mitigate the sound. It’s totally immoral, given the state of everything, it could be better spent to improve the village.”
