'Lessons learnt' from Gairloch waste water row

Toilets were taken to the local beach on Loch Gairloch during a protect against Scottish Water's plans last year

Scottish Water said it learnt lessons about working with communities following a row over waste water treatment in Wester Ross.

The company altered its plans for a new treatment works at Gairloch after they were opposed by local campaign.

Last year's campaign won support from local politicians.

Scottish Water has now sought a licence for a two-year pilot for treating the community's waste water which does have local support.

Alan Thomson, of Scottish Water, said feedback from residents of Gairloch had helped shape the design of the two-year pilot.

He said: "I think it has been a good process from our point of view.

"As opposed to just ploughing, we took a step back and worked with people.

"It has certainly been a good lesson for us and we are pleased with the outcome."

Scottish Water says it learnt lessons following last year's row

Scottish Water has sought a licence from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency to install a new waste water treatment process made up of septic tanks and disc filters in Gairloch.

The utilities company will also use ultra-violet (UV) treatment year-round for an initial two-year pilot period.

It had previously planned to use UV for just five months of the year.

However, it abandoned the initial time limit after local campaigners raised concerns about the non-UV treated waste water being discharged at sea.

The campaign included a demonstration that involved toilets being temporarily placed on a beach next to Gairloch and people swimming in the sea.