ARGYLL and Bute Council’s leader has urged officers to begin to build a case for Scottish Government funding to fight flooding issues in Oban.
Councillor Jim Lynch (SNP, Oban South and the Isles) said there was “a lot of public worry” about potential incidents, and he added his voice to calls for more regular updates to councillors.
Another councillor also joined calls for a web page to be set up on the council website on potential flooding issues locally, and also praised the efforts of a team to deal with issues on Crannog Lane.
The discussion took place at a meeting of the council’s Oban Lorn and the Isles area committee on Wednesday, December 10.
Councillor Lynch said: “There are two issues we have to deal with in the short term, and I would take up the suggestion that it becomes a standard item on the agenda.
“There is a lot of public worry and looking out of my window (as the meeting took place) I do not think the rain will stop any time soon.
“In terms of lobbying, do we have a costing exercise to go to the Scottish Government and plead our case?
“I would be happy to pursue that if we say that the money we need is for X, Y and Z. Have we reached that stage yet?”
Elsa Simoes, the council’s infrastructure design manager, responded: “There is a business case, and the question was put forward to the Scottish Government, Scottish Water and SEPA (Scottish Environmental Protection Agency).
“The Scottish Government said they would come back to us at the next meeting, which has not happened yet.”
Councillor Lynch added: “The reason I mentioned it was that it is in the recommendations to lobby for funding. If we were going to do that we would need to start building a case.”
Councillor Amanda Hampsey (Conservative, Oban South and the Isles) then said: “I would appreciate if this was raised as a meeting item at each area committee, given the amount of correspondence.
“I am aware of the web page, and have discussed with officers, which gives more frequent access to information and updates for the rock situation in Mull.
“I would propose that a similar page is created on the Oban flooding, where any member of the public can access information easily and quickly.
“I am also very pleased to hear that staff will attend Crannog Lane, and I have had many issues raised over a period of time.”
