Planning matters
The council remains on recess for another week but the planning process continues.
The latest planning weekly list is here where you will read about applications in North Edinburgh, firstly for the Madelvic building in Granton where planners are asked to grant permission for the former Wireworks building to be turned into 28 townhouses with a new roof, an application for improvements at West Pilton Park where they will install a new skatepark and a community growing space, and new electric vehicle charging points at The Village Hotel on Crewe Road South.
Coming up at Out of the Blue
Out of the Blue on Dalmeny Street is now 30 years old. The celebrations are going on all year long and there is a full programme of activities including exhibitions, classes workshops and a flea market in August.
Cultural news
The festivals and Fringe are almost upon us. The opening event of the Edinburgh International Festival will be held over three nights at George Heriot’s School on Lauriston Place. There are still some tickets left for the outdoor event and you can find out more here.
Portobello pollution
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) report that they have been unable to identify the source of the high bacteria reading in the analysis of bathing water at Portobello at the beginning of the month. This led to immediate closure of Portobello Beach – although only for a short time.
At Portobello, long-term sampling and microbial source tracking (MST) analysis has shown that the three main sources of pollution tend to be human, dog and gull. SEPA officers checked Scottish Water assets in the area, as well as other potential sources, but no signs of pollution were detected. If the high result had been caused by sewage a clear MST indication of human would be expected.
Vicki White, SEPA Senior Manager in Environmental Performance, said:“The fact that a follow-up sample taken on Thursday 11th July showed water quality was already back to normal indicates this was a short-lived event that had no lasting impact.
“Microbial source tracking can be very helpful in identifying a source, but in this case our analysis of this one sample has not been able to identify one. However, these results – combined with the fact our officers found no issues when we checked Scottish Water assets in the area – does indicate that this was not a sewage related incident.
“While this single result cannot give us a definite answer, it is a good reminder to clear up litter, as food sources can cause gulls to gather in large numbers. Picking up after your dog is another simple things people can do to help protect water quality – and make a beach visit more pleasant for other visitors.
“Water sampling will be ongoing throughout the bathing season as part of routine testing, and we will continue to investigate any high bacterial results and take actions to tackle any pollution sources identified.”
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Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
