Council to advise and support private facility owners affected by December storm
17th January 2013
Members of The Highland Council�s Transport, Environmental and Community Services Committee have agreed that the Council will continue to provide advice and support to privately owned facilities which have been affected by the storm surge.
Members were informed today (Thursday) that the extent of damage to 24 Council harbour facilities and coastal defences during the 14/15 December 2012 storm is likely to exceed the current estimate of �2.555 million.
Councillor Graham Phillips, Chairman of the Council�s Transport, Environmental and Community Services Committee, extended his appreciation to Council staff for their excellent response during the storm and the clear-up in its aftermath.
He said: �We are now moving forward and advising the private sector in communities on the east coast and looking at requests for economic re-development of the areas affected. We are currently engaging with some of the private harbour owners and the local fishing community who have been affected.�
Neil Gillies, the Council�s Director of Transport, Environmental and Community Services, added: �The immediate clean-up and many minor works have been carried out thanks to emergency powers conferred by our Chief Executive. We are now looking towards major repair works that are required and seeking assistance from the Scottish Government. We are endeavouring to work with the private sector owners who have been affected to try and find a way forward with them for repairs at locations, such as Lybster Harbour.�
To help meet the repair bill, the Council will be submitting a claim to the Scottish Government under the Bellwin Scheme.
Council Leader Drew Hendry has already written to Richard Lochead MSP Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Environment, inviting him to consider providing emergency financial assistance to meet the costs of the repairs and seeking an early meeting to discuss what financial assistance the Scottish Government can provide.
Further reports with full detailed costs will be submitted to a future Council meeting.
Related Businesses
Related Articles
Wick Business Park has welcomed wind energy technology company ENERCON as the first occupant of one of four new units completed last year. ENERCON specialises in designing, producing, installing and servicing onshore wind turbines and has been operating in the Caithness area since 2013.
Additional empty homes officers are being recruited to bring more privately owned houses back into use. The new posts are being supported as part of a £2 million investment through the Scottish Empty Homes Partnership in 2025-26 which will see staff take a more proactive and targeted approach to tackling local housing issues.
The Highland Strategic Local Action Group (LAG) met in June 2025 and considered and agreed funding for 28 projects submitted to the Community-Led Local Development fund (CLLD), which makes up part of The Highland Council Community Regeneration Fund (CRF) programme. CRF is an umbrella term used to cover multiple external funding programmes administered by The Highland Council.
Highland Council has provided 12 ‘Talking Tub' resources for use in primary schools across the Highlands, in partnership with Union Technical who deliver community benefits as part of the Energy Efficient Scotland: Area Based Scheme programme. Chair of Highland Council's Education Committee, Councillor John Finlayson, said: "This is a fantastic initiative being rolled out across Highland primary schools which brings innovation and inspiration to early years children.
Visitors will find it easier to dispose of their litter at several popular spots across Highland after the rollout of additional bins. The rollout has been planned to support the tourism season as part of the Council's ongoing commitment to improve and support sustainable tourism in the area.
Members of the meeting of The Highland Council (26 June 2025) have considered and agreed the Accounts Commission's Best Value report, which was published in April 2025 and highlights organisational improvements across leadership, performance management and community engagement. In April’s report, the Accounts Commission recognised and welcomed significant progress within the organisation since the 2020 Best Value Assurance Report (BVAR) and commended the embedded culture of transformation.
A new generation of community facilities is being planned for the Highlands. At a meeting of The Highland Council (Thursday 26 June), elected members approved the work to date in progressing the Highland Investment Plan workstreams - masterplan for Thurso and agreed to nominate the current Thurso High School site as the preferred location for the new Thurso Community Point of Delivery (POD).
At a meeting of The Highland Council (Thursday 26 June 2025), Members received a progress report on the partnership approach and important successes since declaring a Highland Housing Challenge in November 2023. Since establishing the ambitious Highland Housing Challenge, important successes included: A call for sites delivered 250 sites, with a potential 25,000 housing units which will support delivery against the target of an additional 12,000 houses over the next 10 years.
The Highland Council will deliver a transformative programme of energy efficiency upgrades across Council housing supported by a £9.2 million Energy Company Obligation (ECO) funding proposal secured by Union Technical. The funding proposal will deliver approximately 1,000 individual energy efficiency measures to Council owned properties across the Highlands.
As part of the Highland Council's celebration of Refugee Week - 16 to 22 June - we are delighted to announce that a sharing of photographs, taken by separated young people seeking asylum living within the Highlands, is to be shown at Eden Court Arts Centre, Inverness. Look to See, which ties in with the theme for this year’s Refugee Week - Community as a Superpower - emerges out of a collaboration between multiple agencies working alongside separated young people seeking asylum, embodying the importance of community and connection, when looking to support all young people in the Highlands.