Also in the news / Power cut, Dunter update and more…
HOUSEHOLDS and businesses in the parts of the North Mainland were affected by a second power cut in just three days earlier on Thursday.
Around 400 customers in the Vidlin, Whalsay and Voe area lost electricity at just before midday with most people being reconnected two hours later.
On Tuesday, almost 700 customers in the same area of Shetland lost power for several hours.
SSEN has not yet responded to our request for further information on the outages.
THE CHIEF executive of trade body Salmon Scotland, former Shetland MSP Tavish Scott, has welcomed a tribunal ruling that allows salmon producers to drop the word ‘farmed’ from the front of their packaging.
Campaigners from Animals Equality UK and Wildfish had appealed a government decision claiming that removing the word ‘farmed’ would mislead customers.
But a tribunal ruled that this was not the case as ‘farm raised’ had still to be displayed at the back of any packaging.
Scott said: “Anti-salmon farming campaign groups WildFish and Animal Equality are shameless in their misguided campaign to ban salmon farming.
“They knew their appeal had no basis in law but dragged the UK government though the courts at taxpayers’ expense anyway.
“This verdict confirms in no uncertain terms that Atlantic salmon farm-raised in Scotland is called Scottish salmon.”
The trade body has also welcomed news that Labour supports a third runway at Heathrow Airport, saying that salmon is the airport’s single biggest export by volume.
A SHETLAND Islands Council tug boat is back in action after suffering damage to her bow late last year.
Dunter, which is used in the port of Sullom Voe to assist oil tankers, was taken out of service after damage created a hole in her bow.
She went to Leith for a permanent repair and was put back in service on Wednesday (29 January).
The boat was pictured with a hole in her bow, above the waterline, in December. There were no injuries and no pollution following the damage.
The Marine Accident Investigation Branch was notified.
LOGANAIR is now inviting applications for its 2025 GreenSkies community fund, an initiative aimed at helping charities, community groups and small businesses achieve their sustainability goals.
Grants of up to £5,000 are available.
Last year, successful projects included a plant nursery in Shetland that used its £4,449 grant to install solar panels and go off-grid during the summer.
Rebecca Borresen, director of safety and sustainability at Loganair, said: “Our GreenSkies Community Fund is a cornerstone of Loganair’s commitment to sustainability.
“We are proud to once again offer this opportunity to local organisations across our network, helping them make meaningful progress towards their environmental goals.”
Interested organisations can learn more about the fund and submit their applications by visiting Loganair’s website here. Closing date is 3 March.
THE COUNCIL has produced advice on enhancing biodiversity to assist developers, in line with current national planning policy.
The document is primarily aimed anyone undertaking smaller scale developments, such as local housing projects, but will also be useful for larger developments.
It will also help anyone seeking to enhance biodiversity and support wildlife on their own land, or in community spaces.
The advice note is available online here.
THE UNITE union has secured a new recognition deal with Wilson James Security covering workers at the Sullom Voe Terminal.
The recognition agreement covers around 20 workers providing security services on site for EnQuest to patrol the premises to ensure the security and safety at the terminal.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “The new recognition agreement which Unite has successfully negotiated with Wilson James Security for our members at the Sullom Voe terminal is an important step forward. It will help to drive up the standard of jobs, pay and conditions for the security workers.”
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