A development brief for future land use and site restoration plans at a site in Dounreay, near Thurso, has been approved by the Highland Council's Planning, Environment and Development Committee.

The site, situated in Caithness, is that of a former nuclear power research site.

The Dounreay Planning Framework 2 (DPF2) is an up-to-date overview of the scheme and replaces the existing framework that has been in place since 2006, and which acted as a land use development brief against which to regulate and control future decommissioning and restoration works proposed at the site.

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DPF2 has been prepared by the Council in partnership with Dounreay Site Restoration Limited, the site operator. Once the new Framework is approved by the Scottish Government, it will be adopted by the local authority and used to guide future planning decisions.

Councillor Thomas Rag, Chairman of the Planning, Environment and Development Committee, said: "I want to thank everyone who has taken part in the consultation for their comments and hope they feel their points have been addressed in the revisions we have made.

"Essentially DPF2 is a land use document which presents an up-to-date overview addressing a wide number of factors and it will allow us to strategically plan for the future of this key site.

"Importantly, it has the flexibility to be able to give a measured response to any issues that will, no doubt, come up as work on decommissioning the site continues."

Area Convener, Councillor Deirdre Mackay, added: "This is a very important piece of work so I am pleased to see that the comments we made during our meeting in Golspie have been considered and on our recommendation the PED Committee have approved the revised version."

(JP/CD)