Objectors to a controversial plan to build a waste-to-energy plant in Perth face an anxious wait while Scottish ministers consider the proposal.
The most eagerly awaited planning decision in the city for decades is now in their hands as the man who heard an eight-day public inquiry has delivered his findings to the Scottish Government.
What conclusions Dannie Onn came to on the plan by Grundon Waste Management for a site in Shore Road will remain under wraps until ministers have made a decision.
“The report (by Mr Onn) will not be published until the decision is made, at which point both will be released into the public domain,” said a spokesperson for the Directorate for Planning and Environmental Appeals.
The inquiry was held last year because of the controversy and potential environmental implications of the gasification plant and it was a platform at which the depth of public feeling was demonstrated.
Perth and Kinross Council, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, members of the community and Perth Prison management all vehemently opposed the scheme.
The Scottish Prison Service asserted that constant noise and vibrations from a plant sited yards from C block of the Edinburgh Road prison could cause prisoners to protest, refuse to work or even assault staff.
If granted permission, the facility would see tonnes of rubbish treated every day, leading to fears of pollution.
The council argued that the proposed site occupied an important location overlooking the River Tay and a development which offered environmental enhancement would be more in keeping with its position close to the South Inch, the prison and the river.
Mr Onn’s report was initially due to have been completed by March but the sheer volume of material he had to consider saw the timescale slip to mid-May. This came and went and the revised timing was such that he would deliver his report towards the end of June, as he now has.
How long ministers will take to come to a decision is unknown but politicians want the saga brought to an end. “I sincerely hope that this decision will be reached speedily and that the verdict will back the views already clearly and unequivocally expressed by the people of Perth,” said Perth and North Perthshire MP Pete Wishart.
“I trust that if the response is not in their favour, then Grundon will finally give up on their plans.”
Perth city centre councillor Heather Stewart echoed these sentiments, saying: “I hope ministers will not take too long over this report. The people of Perth have been through enough. This matter has gone on far too long and needs to be resolved.
“I hope the outcome of their deliberations will ensure that the incinerator is not built in Perth city.”