Bringing a greener future to the Highlands
Acorn Bioenergy is consulting on plans to develop an anaerobic digestion plant at Fearn Airfield, west of Balintore.
We held a drop-in event which provided local residents and the wider community an opportunity to view the proposals, ask Acorn team members questions about the facility and leave feedback.
After listening to your feedback, we have now submitted a planning application for the anaerobic digestion plant to the local council.
Location
The proposed development would be located on agricultural land at Fearn Airfield, due west of the Seaboard Villages.
The site falls within Easter Ross, a strategically important part of the Inner Moray Firth referred to as the Ross-shire Growth Area within the Inner Moray Firth Local Development Plan 2015 (IMFLDP 2015). The sites within this area have the potential to provide nationally important hubs for renewable development.
The location has been chosen as Acorn prioritises sites with good access to farms that can provide high quality agricultural inputs such as energy crops and residues as well as nearby distilleries who can provide co-products including draff and pot ale. It also has good proximity to our gas injection hub at Morayston, Dalcross, Inverness where the biomethane created shall enter the gas grid as renewable fuel.
With site selection, Acorn takes into careful consideration the visual impact the potential development could pose and employs a specialized consultant to ensure this impact is minimal. There are few immediate neighbours to the site, with the majority of homes in the local area being more than one mile away.
Site location (in red)
Site Layout