Mearns farmers have expressed outrage after SSEN said it might use compulsory purchase orders to make way for a substation.
SSEN wants to build two substations at Fiddes and Tealing, which will form part of a project for a new overhead line between Kintore and Tealing.
SSEN has stressed it will only use compulsory purchase orders (CPOs) as an “absolute last resort” and said “every attempt” will be made to achieve voluntary agreements.
Residents of the tranquil Mearns countryside have united against the proposals by forming the Save Our Mearns group.
They argue it will ruin the unspoiled countryside, which was made famous by Lewis Grassic Gibbon’s book Sunset Song.
Shona and John Alexander, whose families have been working at Upper Pitforthie Farm at Fordoun for more than 60 years.
‘SSEN threatened us with compulsory purchase’
“SSEN came to my husband at the start of the year and spoke of a substation”, Mrs Alexander told The P&J.
“My husband told them we were not selling.
“They said he doesn’t have a choice, and threatened us with compulsory purchase if we don’t agree to sell our land.”
SSEN insists the proposals are necessary to enable the connection of renewable energy and to fight against climate change.
The substation at Fiddes will be 120 acres, the same size as the Blackhillock substation near Keith – which was the largest substation in the UK when it was built in 2019.
Mearns farm will become too small to make a living from
The couple, who have three grown-up children, said around 102 acres of the site will be built on their land.
It will mean a third of their farmland will be gone.
Mrs Alexander said: “We are not going to be able to stay here.
“It is not about property price for us.
“It’s about lives, quality of living, environment and farmers having enough land to actually farm and make a living for this and the next generation.”
The scale of the plans means that the nearby horse burial ground could be destroyed.
Mrs Alexander said: “We thought they would be buried for the rest of their lives. SSEN’s plans will mean they will be dug up.”
The farm is also home to a wide range of foxes, hares, weasels, stoats, deer, bats, owls and birds of prey and badgers, a protected species.
Mrs Alexander said they have been treated “appallingly” by the company, and claimed they are using “underhand and bullying” tactics.
A number of other residents have also shared their concerns about the lack of time SSEN provided for them to review the proposals, causing the company to extend the consultation by two weeks until June 23.
What does SSEN say about Mearns farmers’ plight?
A spokesman for SSEN Transmission said: “In all our engagement with Mr and Mrs Alexander we believe we have been open and transparent throughout and are therefore disappointed to learn of the accusations that have been made, which we strongly refute.
“We would like to reassure all stakeholders that we remain at the early stages of development and no decisions about potential substation locations or overhead line routes have been taken.
“Where there may be a requirement for us to purchase land for our infrastructure, every attempt will be made to reach an agreement on a voluntary basis and it is only as an absolute last resort, will we consider using our statutory compulsory purchase order powers.
“In the event that we look to progress with the site on Mr and Mrs Alexander’s land, we will do all we can to ensure any construction works are handled sensitively around the burial site of their horses.”
The firm also has also pointed residents to its biodiversity blog showing its commitment to leaving a “positive environmental legacy”.
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