ABERDEEN councillors were yesterday accused of "recklessly" flouting green-belt policy and threatening the integrity of a critical flood plain on the outskirts of the city.
Residents in the Cults suburb claim a decision by the council's policy and strategy committee to include proposals for a housing development within the Dee Valley flood plain in the finalised local plan could lead to homes and businesses downstream
of the proposed site being threatened by rising river levels.
Councillors gave the go-ahead for the ten-house development to be included in the blueprint despite objections by senior planning officials.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) yesterday confirmed that the agency had objected to the finalised local plan, as there was "insufficient evidence" to show that potential land-use allocations had been subjected to consistent flood-risk screening.
Derek Young, a leading chartered surveyor who is spokesman for a group of residents, said: "The land is on the Dee flood plain and, as we understand it, if these houses are to be built the scheme will involve the construction of some form of flood defences.
"The flooding will have to go somewhere and it could have a serious impact on homes and business in other parts of the river which could go under water. We find the council's decision very surprising."
A resident, who did not wish to be named, said: "It is a completely reckless decision. We are talking about green-belt land which is on a flood plain.
"What they are proposing is building flood defences, which means that the flood plain won't flood and Garthdee and upper Cults will flood," the resident added.
"The precedent being set is enormous. If this goes through, it opens up the whole of the green belt to development. It opens up potential building on all flood plains on the River Dee."
The row centres on the inclusion of a ten-house residential development at Loirsbank, Cults, on the northern bank of the River Dee. The proposed developer argued that the land should be allocated for residential development, as it was "not on the River Dee flood plain".
But senior council planners objected to the scheme's inclusion on the grounds of "defensible green-belt boundary and flooding risk". They stated in a report to councillors: "Consideration should only be given to development on the site if a flood-risk assessment has demonstrated that such risk is within acceptable limits."
A Sepa spokeswoman said: "We did object to the finalised Aberdeen City local plan on a number of grounds, one of which was insufficient evidence provided to show that potential land-use allocations have been subjected to consistent flood-risk screening."
The full article contains 454 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
