Pete Bevington

27 June, 2007

A SEVEN year campaign to build a new £3.3 million pier in Britain's most northerly isle finally paid off yesterday (Tuesday).

Shetland Islands Council's executive committee yesterday agreed to spend £1.2 million on the first phase of a new pier at Uyeasound, a small village at the south end of Unst.

Local people were jubilant at the news, saying that it was a miracle that lives had not been lost due to the lack of a working jetty in the harbour.

Uyeasound Waterfront Trust chairman George Jamieson described the news as "incredible" last night, saying that it would provide a safe berth for at least five local fish farm boats which currently have to anchor in Uyeasound bay.

"In the winter months people have to climb from a boat at anchor on to a smaller boat to get to the old pier in seas as high as three or four metres. How we have not had an accident here is a miracle," Mr Jamieson exclaimed.

"There were times when the boats were struggling to find a mooring buoy and had to tie up at a salmon cage all night. Women and children were wondering whether the men were coming home or not; that's not on in the 21st century."

Uyeasound is the base for two fish farms run by the Uyeasound Salmon Company and Lakeland Ltd, which employ around 30 people between them.

Mr Jamieson said the plan was to build a pier with an industrial estate outside the site of the old Umphray shop to support the local aquaculture industry, including mussel farms, and the transport of sheep and cattle on to the uninhabited isle of Uyea.

The arrival of a pier and breakwater may pave the way for other developments, including a new marina

The campaign for the pier was boosted by the commitment from both Shetland Islands Council and HIE Shetland to support Unst after the closure of the RAF base at Saxa Vord last year.

"This will be a big fillip for Unst, and there are people from Fetlar that come to work here too. If I sound excited, that's because I am," Mr Jamieson said.

The first phase of the pier project will see access to the site being opened up and the building of a breakwater, which will mean opening up an old quarry on the island.

The pier slipped up the council's overstretched capital programme after delays occurred in other projects, including the Anderson High School, Mid Yell Junior High School and the Bressay bridge.

In total the council has found almost £3 million in extra cash, which will be spent on school maintenance (£795,000); designing a new Lerwick library (£100,000); public toilets (£100,000); a rock crusher at Scord quarry (£250,000); and recladding the council's DLO workshop at Gremista (£430,000).

Chris Medley, who heads the SIC capital programme review team, explained: "Projects get delayed for all sorts of reasons, so to maximise our spending we bring forward projects which are next in line under our new priorities system, rather than on an ad hoc basis which is what happened before."