FRESH concerns over the operational status of the Buckie-based Moray Council dredger MV Selkie have been raised following an incident at Burghead Harbour. Chairman of the council’s Audit and Scrutiny Committee, Councillor Marc Macrae, has spoken out after a fishing boat was left grounded at the mouth of the harbour for11 hours, with a lack of dredging being a possible cause of the incident. He said: “To hear that a vessel was grounded at the entrance to Burghead Harbour is clearly a concern which requires further investigation and if proven to be as a result of a lack of dredging then lessons must be learnt and fast to ensure that no such situation occurs again. “Moray Council are the statutory harbour authority for six harbours which cater for both the leisure market and thriving commercial sector and with vessel owners paying harbour dues to berth at these ports they clearly expect a level of service which allows them safe passage to and from the harbour. “At the December meeting of audit and scrutiny it
was requested that a report be presented at the next meeting in February which outlines the current position of the dredger and how its operational status compares with the business case which was made for its commissioning.
“There has been much comment on social media about the Selkie and its effectiveness. It is very easy for people to see that it has remained berthed in Buckie harbour for some considerable time and at a time when the local authority is
facing significant budget constraints, it is right that people expect council assets to be providing a fit and proper service while delivering value for money. “
A Moray Council spokeswoman said: “Without more information about the alleged grounding we can’t confirm that it was due to lack of dredging. “There is an established safe navigation channel that should be used to approach Burghead, which most harbour users are aware of. “The dredger last worked at Burghead in July, and it has a full year of dredging planned in Moray harbours for 2019.”