CAMPAIGNERS protesting against proposals for ship-to-ship (STS) oil transfers in the environmentally important Moray Firth have won the backing of best-selling author Ian Rankin.
The creator of irascible cop Rebus yesterday joined activists at a rally outside the Scottish Parliament.
They fear an oil spill in the area, at the mouth of the Cromarty Firth, would be catastrophic for the waters – which are home to species such as bottlenose dolphins, minke whales and porpoises.
Cromarty Firth Port Authority insist safeguards are in place and that it takes its environmental responsibilities “extremely seriously”.
Rankin said he had been holidaying in Cromarty for years and had a house there, so knows the area well.
“The Cromarty Firth would be a terrible place for an accident to happen and it only takes one accident,” he said.
“You can be safe 99.9 per cent of the time but one accident is enough to destroy everything that’s there.
“It’s such a rich, biodiverse area and, of course, tourism is the lifeblood. If one thing went wrong, it would be hellish.”
Campaign groups Marine Connection and Cromarty Rising had organised the Holyrood rally. Margaux Dodds of Marine Connection told The National she was delighted at the level of support they had received.
“There was a lot of support for us today,” she said.
“Apart from Ian Rankin, several MSPs came out to speak to us which was fabulous, and I think it went extremely well.”
Similar plans for STS transfers in the Firth of Forth ended with Forth Ports dropping their proposals in 2008 following a lengthy campaign.
The decision is ultimately one for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) and the UK Government.
Dodds said they would now seek a meeting with the MCA in the Highlands: “We’re pushing for the MCA to come up and meet us in the Moray Firth area to discuss it with residents.”
The Greens argue the Scottish Government should “get off the fence” and use the powers it has to protect the environment.
Mark Ruskell, their environment spokesman, said: “While the decision to licence the application ultimately rests with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, Scottish ministers have clear legal powers to protect the environment and the environmental importance of the Moray Firth couldn’t be clearer.
“They need to put their foot down and show whose side they are on.”
Nicola Sturgeon was questioned on the issue by Gail Ross, the SNP MSP for Caithness, Sutherland and Ross, during First Minister’s Questions.
Ross, who had joined the rally with colleague Kate Forbes, urged the MCA “to pay close attention to the potential environmental impact of ship-to-ship, if it was allowed to go ahead”.
Sturgeon told her the Scottish Government remained unconvinced that the transfers “can or should” take place in the firth, without resulting in an unacceptable risk to the marine environment.
She added: “We will ensure that the concerns of local communities are heard by the UK authorities while continuing to press for the relevant powers to be devolved to Scotland.
“We will continue also to support the Cromarty Firth Port Authority, which is a vital and valued part of the economy of the north of Scotland. The MCA, in my view, has a duty to listen to these concerns and to the local people.”
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