Scotland’s plans for a space station have been blocked by the nation’s historic environment watchdog after the Shetland site was deemed of ‘cultural significance’.
The proposed development of a Shetland Space Centre, which is being backed by Scotland’s richest man Anders Holch Povlsen, was rejected due to the site having once been a Second World War radar station.
Developers were denied scheduled monument consent to build on the former RAF radar station site in the village of Skaw, on the island of Unst in the Shetlands, by Historic Environment Scotland (HES), which described the site as a ‘remarkably well preserved and intact military complex which dates from the early 1940s’.
Shetland Space Centre chief executive Frank Strang vowed to ‘vigorously contest’ the environment watchdog’s decision and told The Herald he was ‘greatly surprised’ as HES had ‘done nothing to preserve the site for the last 50 years’.
Danish ASOS billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen, who is the largest landowner in Scotland, has invested £1.43m into the spaceport via Wild Ventures Ltd – the sister company of Wildland Ltd, which runs Povlsen’s estates.
The Shetland Space Centre has already been approved by the UK Space Agency to become part of the UK’s spaceflight programme, with Lockheed Martin planning to move its UK Pathfinder Launch to the island using a £23.5m grant.
Located in the village of Skaw, on the island of Unst in the Shetlands, the radar station was denied scheduled monument consent by Historic Environment Scotland
Lockheed Martin planned to move its UK Pathfinder Launch to the island using a £23.5m grant
According to Lockheed Martin the first satellite launched from the UK will be used to collect data from space that will ‘help drive growth across the country’.
The application contains a proposal for a launch site on the Lamba Ness peninsula on Unst, with various site buildings.
Around 140 jobs would be created at the launch site and a further 70 throughout Scotland if given the go ahead, bringing £7.8million gross value per year to the nation’s economy, The Herald reports.
In its decision HES said it had noted the ‘profitable benefits’ of the site but said there was ‘no compelling case’ for it to be built on the culturally significant location.
Proposals for a launch site which includes a hangar and other site buildings in Unst
The application contains a proposal for a launch site on the Lamba Ness peninsula on Unst, with various site buildings. Unst is the most northerly island of the Shetlands
Danish ASOS billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen
During World War II the site functioned as the UK’s most northern surveillance point, warning the British military of any incoming aircraft on its radar.
It was one of approximately 17 early warning radar stations built in Scotland.
As Germany invaded Norway in 1940 the lookout became an invaluable part of the UK’s defence.
HES said in its decision: ‘The monument is of national importance because it has an inherent potential to make a significant addition to our understanding of the past, in particular the advance of radar technology and the development of an early warning system protecting the sea and airspace around the United Kingdom.
‘It survives in good condition as a complete example of the technical, support and domestic buildings and structures necessary to provide an early warning reporting function.
‘The loss of the monument would significantly diminish our future ability to appreciate and understand the scale of the efforts employed on the home front in the defence of Britain.’
A proposed mock-up of the proposed Shetland Space Centre, which would have a number of site buildings as well as an aircraft hangar
Shetland Space Centre has the right to appeal the decision.
The scheduled monument consent process is separate to the planning process. HES is the consenting body for scheduled monument consent, and has refused the application in this case.
The planning application is still to be determined by the planning authority, Shetlands Islands Council.
As HES has objected the case will automatically be referred to Scottish Ministers if Shetlands Islands Council grant planning permission.
Plans submitted to HES show the proposed hangar where the spaceport could store rockets
A close up of the plans for the vertical rocket launch pad complete with a security fence
The plans for a privately funded spaceport have been likened to that of SpaceX , Elon Musk’s manufacturer of rockets and spacecraft which has four launch sites across the United States – in Texas, Florida and California.
Mr Strang told The Herald: ‘But be in no doubt: we will vigorously contest HES’s refusal of permission to develop and enhance a site which, while evidently of national significance, has for years been left in a dilapidated state.’
He added that the proposal for the space station also included plans to restore the road leading into the site where ‘old RAF concrete buildings’ currently stand. He said he believed it was a positive to ‘meld the old with the new’.
A spokesperson for HES said: ‘We were consulted by Shetlands Islands Council on plans for a space port at Lamba Ness, Unst, which we recognise as a significant project in terms of its ambition for Scotland to be recognised as a major player in the small satellite launch market, as well as its potential value for local economies. We have objected to the proposals due to their significant adverse impact on the Skaw radar station, which is protected as a scheduled monument.
‘We found that the proposals would result in a significant loss of the site’s cultural significance to the extent that it would no longer meet the criteria for national importance. Impacts would include the loss of over 200 archaeological features associated with the scheduled radar station, as well as the removal of the intactness and coherence of the site which is a key characteristic of its cultural significance.
‘We would welcome the opportunity to work with the Council and applicants to explore alternative options for the spaceport that would reduce the impacts on the scheduled monument.’