Friends of the Ochils Newsletter 20: Spring 2002
Mast Hysteria?
The prospect - or, rather, the threat - of a mobile-phone mast springing up on the Ochils was always likely to come along sooner or later, and the early months of 2002 have indeed seen the posting of a planning application for just such a structure. The proposed site is a very prominent spot on the southern face of Dumyat which would have a substantial and far-flung visual impact quite aside from the metal-and-concrete intrusion on the ground. How best to react/respond to this proposal has taken up a fair chunk of FotO's energies of late, so it's only right that the first couple of pages of this newsletter are devoted to the issue. First we have some thoughts from committee member Robin Kelsall, who lives close to where the mast would be erected. Then, overleaf, come the basic facts with regard to who is making the application and what's the latest state of play, etc.
As slideshow front-man for FotO, I always preface my talk with a bit about our origins - founded by Rennie McOwan in 1993 blah-blah, fears anent future access on to Scotland's hills in general and the Ochils in particular blah-blah - that kind of thing. This preamble ends with an admission that we really haven't had a lot to do over the years, but...
That "but" suggests that we must remain ever watchful; that, in the best traditions of sci-fi B-movies of the 1950s, we must keep watching the skies (or, in this case, the skyline). And what are we looking out for? Why, wind turbines, telecommunication masts and siclike nasties that might threaten the great southern escarpment of the Ochils.
In another capacity (that of secretary of Logie Community Council) all planning applications relevant to our little area land on my doormat. There aren't many, and few have registered on the Richter Scale of contentiousness - until, that is, 2 February 2002. Just in case you know nothing of it, let me put you in the picture.
Vodafone, the world's largest mobile phone operator, wants to put up a mast beside Dumyat Farm. If some of you are struggling to place this, the applicant gives its grid reference as 284537 697152. [The more familar six-figure version is NS845971.] Now, this wee farm can be seen from a great distance, sitting, as it does, on a small plateau above Menstrie. Were the application to receive the thumbs-up, then the mast would be seen from an equally long way off - probably from an even greater distance given its height. They're cunning, these mobile phone people: while their proposal is for the erection of a 12-metre-high lattice tower, it's only when you start looking at the detail that you discover four antennae are to be placed on top of the thing, giving an overall height of 14.7 metres. My imperfect imperial arithmetic tells me that's about 48 feet high. The applicant assures us the thing would be camouflaged - which means it'll be painted green, probably the wrong kind of green and anyway they sure as heck won't paint the antennae, leaving them to twinkle in the sunshine. Oh, and the mast would support three microwave dishes - two little 'uns and a big 'un (300mm and 600mm respectively). I don't imagine they'll be painted green, either.
So, what to do? It's now too late to register opposition, but a goodly number of objections, upward of 30, were lodged before the 22 February closing date (including the FotO objection, of course - we also had letters in the local press). Presumably the objectors will be accused of Luddism, of standing in the way of "progress". Vodafone says it needs yet another of these things so that some wee lassie in Menstrie or Alva may, the more easily, text her pal on the other side of the school playground. Are we right to gainsay it? In this case, I think we are.
We're not against this mast just to be difficult; all we ask is a bit of forethought from the decision-makers both now and in the future. Let's not delude ourselves: should this proposal get the nod it will set a precedent that will have other applicants knocking at the planner's door in double-quick time. There's plenty of room for such masts to be discreetly tucked out of the way; they don't need to be strung along the southern (or northern, or any) face of the hills. And bigger stuff is probably just round the corner. FotO is supportive of the need for more of our power requirements to come from renewable sources including wind turbines - nothing wrong with that. But please, planners, have a care where you put them. If ever we need reminding of the unsightliness of such structures, a glance in the direction of poor old Knock Hill along by Dollar should do the trick.
In terms of the basic info, the application has been made to Stirling Council, in whose patch Dumyat Farm stands (although only just - the Clackmannshire boundary lies less than half a kilometre to the east). The application is S/02/001 14/TCD, and relates to the "erection of a 12m-high lattice tower with four polar antennea and three dish antennae with associated equipment cabin and fencing".
The applicant is Vodafone, represented by Gerard Hanratty of Patrick Farfan Associates Ltd (Scion House, Stirling, FK9 4NF). The land itself is owned by Northern Hydroseedings Ltd, part of the Gogar-based Snowie Group. FotO has enquired of a Snowie representative as to the amount of money that would change hands should the mast be built, but no answer has been forthcoming, despite an appeal to the public interest. Current planning regulations are such that even Stirling Council does not know the amount potentially involved, nor whether any payment would take the form of a lump sum or an annual rent.
The council has however kept FotO informed as to the sequence of events with regard to the application, and we know that a site visit took place in early March involving John Milne from Stirling planning department, a Clacks colleague and a rep from Farfan Associates.
The planning officers will be making recommendations on the council's regular planning schedule. Once this has happened, any councillor (not just the one on whose patch Dumyat Farm stands) can make a written request, within seven days, for the application to be referred to the planning panel. If such a request is not made, then the planning officers' decision stands.
While FotO has no overall stance on mobile phone masts, we strongly object to any such structure being erected on the Ochil hill slopes, especially in such a prominent spot as this - Dumyat Farm is itself some 90m up above the carse and the mast would be visible over a wide arc. At present, no masts have defaced the main Ochil slopes (at least not since the Ben Cleuch plateau mast came down in the 1980s), and we implore the councillors and planning officials to maintain this situation. The Ochils area - particularly the southern escarpment - is too precious, from the scenic and conservation standpoints, to be carelessly cluttered in this way. And, as Robin K has pointed out, the building of just one mast sets a precedent which the developers will not fail to exploit.
Stop Press
Just before we went to press came news that the latest Stirling planning schedule shows the Dumyat mast application to have been "withdrawn in its present form" (our italics). In light of 43 letters of comment the applicants evidently thought it better to head homeward and think again. Good news. It's one to watch, though: the implication is that the proposal will, at some stage and in a modified form, be back...