Streamlined fish farm consent delayed by a handful of seabirds

A Shetland fish farm planning application being processed under a supposedly quicker permitting process has been delayed, The Shetland Times has reported.

A decision was expected on Scottish Sea Farms’ application for its 6,000-tonne site next to the island of Fish Holm off the east coast on Mainland last week, but planners have asked for more information on its environmental impact.

The request follows an objection to the plan by Scottish Government agency NatureScot, a statutory consultee, which is concerned about the impact on birds that breed in the area.

Although there has been a fish farm on the site in the past, it has been inactive for more than 10 years, and the area that it lies within was later designated a Special Protection Area (SPA) because of its use by the three bird species: the great northern diver (non-breeding), red-throated diver (breeding), and Slavonian grebe (non-breeding).

Appropriate assessment

NatureScot says SSF’s proposal for what would be Scotland’s biggest salmon farm is likely to have a significant effect on the birds, and that Shetland Islands Council is required to carry out an appropriate assessment in view of the site's conservation objectives.

It said surveys to support the planning application covered only the second half of the red-throated diver’s breeding season, and indicate that the east side of the island is an important foraging area for the birds.

“Red-throated diver use in this area overlaps with [the] west side of the development footprint and therefore there is a risk of disturbance and displacement of birds using this area,” wrote NatureScot.

“Of the three months during which the surveys were undertaken, two of those months (July and August) included the critical chick rearing period (June-August). Monthly peak counts within 1km of the development were highest in July with a mean peak of 13, potentially indicating that this is an important foraging site during the critical chick rearing period.”

Sensitive to disturbance

NatureScot said that as a species with a high level of sensitivity to disturbance, it is likely that red-throated diver foraging between the island of Fish Holm and the fish farm will be disturbed and potentially displaced due to operational activities at the site. 

It added that the peak number of 13 birds recorded within 1km of the development footprint in July “represents 3.17% of the site level population”.