People urged to visit eastern sewage plan sessions

Axnfell plantation is currently proposed as the site for the sewage treatment plant

People living in parts of the east of the Isle of Man have been encouraged to attend public information sessions about a proposed sewage works.

Manx Utilities has plans for a number of intermediate pumping stations in Laxey and a plant at Axnfell Plantation, which will also serve Lonan.

The local authority fort he area said it while it had been "frustrating" waiting to get to the current point, there was some "relief" the plans were now moving forward.

Garff Commissioner Melanie Christian called for residents to attend drop-in sessions in Laxey and Baldrine about the plans on 28 and 29 November.

It follows the conclusion of a hearing into an appeal against MU's plans for a regional sewage treatment works at Peel in the west last month.

As with the MU plans for Peel, the planned works for Garff aim to stop the pumping of raw sewage into the sea, which currently happens at Laxey Bay and Baldrine.

Manx Utilities plans for a sewage treatment works by the harbour were rejected in 2020

Christian said that settling on the Axnfell site had been “a compromise on both sides”.

That was because the latest planning proposal follows a rejected application for a site at the Cairns, on the eastern side of the town’s harbour.

Those plans were rejected in 2020 amid concerns from residents over the smell and the potential drop in tourism in the area.

She said while MU "did prefer the Cairns site from an engineering point of view", residents had objected from a social perspective.

With an environmental impact assessment, scoping reports and planning application still to be completed, it would still be some time before works may begin, Christian said.

The commissioner encouraged residents to attend the drop-in information sessions at the end of this month at Laxey Sailing Club and Baldrine Church Hall, particularly those living in the Axnfell area or near the proposed sites for the pumping stations.