Surfing lake at Craigpark Quarry near Ratho gets green light

Backers of the plan have released images of how the centre might look

Scotland's first artificial surf centre, on the outskirts of Edinburgh, has been given planning consent.

Wavegarden Scotland has been given the green light to turn Craigpark Quarry pit near Ratho into a huge lake with a machine recreating waves for any level of surfer.

It will be able to generate 1,000 waves an hour.

The £15m facility promises to create 130 jobs and offer a range of other adventure activities.

Andy Hadden, the co-founder of Tartan Leisure Ltd which is developing Wavegarden Scotland, said: "We are thrilled that the plans for Wavegarden Scotland have been approved.

"We believe that this facility will deliver many benefits for the local community and for Scotland by offering world-class adventure leisure amenities alongside a wonderful country park, for walkers, runners and cyclists to enjoy.

"Alongside this, we expect to create up to 130 jobs and generate up to £11m for the local economy every year.

"Another very exciting aspect of Wavegarden Scotland is the opportunity to nurture surfing and sporting talent.

"With Scotland's own surfing team starting to make a mark on the global surf scene, we hope to inspire the next generation of surfers, lifeguards, and active outdoor enthusiasts."

Breaking talent

Mark Boyd, captain of Scotland's national surfing team, said: "We welcome Wavegarden Scotland's visionary project and look forward to practising our sport in safe and consistent waves.

"Having this facility will give the Scottish surfing team a huge edge when it comes to future competitions, to have this as a base will do wonders for the sport.

"Scotland's surf scene is growing and we have some exciting home-grown talent breaking onto the scene.

"With surfing making its debut as an Olympic Sport at Tokyo 2020, Wavegarden Scotland will play a key role in encouraging and developing future Scottish surfers and putting this fantastic sport in the spotlight."

Christine Jardine, MP for Edinburgh West, said: "As the local MP for Ratho, I am delighted the village could play host to Scotland's first surfing lagoon.

"This will be a great attraction west of the city, creating up to 130 new jobs. It will be a fantastic facility for locals and tourists alike."

Josema Odriozola, founder and CEO of Wavegarden - the company which created the wave generation technology that will power Wavegarden Scotland - said: "It's great to see that the planning application has been approved, so now Edinburgh will have its own surf spot for everyone to enjoy."