Outline design of Musselburgh flood protection scheme gets OK

The outline design of a scheme to protect Musselburgh from major flood risk was presented to elected members at the full meeting of East Lothian Council on Tuesday 23 January 2024.

At the meeting, councilors agreed that the design can now be presented to stakeholders and the public through a formal, statutory consultation process.

This means that a final decision on whether to go ahead with the project is still to be taken, with further opportunities for the community to provide feedback and ask questions regarding the proposals.

The scheme brings together four separate projects and allows East Lothian Council to deliver flood protection and unprecedented level of investment to the town of Musselburgh. The four projects are:

1. Musselburgh Flood Protection Scheme, being advanced under the Scottish Government’s Cycle 1 Programme for Flood Protection Schemes. The updated estimate for the scheme is £53.9 million,
2. Major repair works required to the existing Scottish Power Ash Lagoons Seawall. The updated estimate for this work is £52.1 million,
3. Significant parts of two of the routes of Musselburgh Active Toun, which will deliver new active travel infrastructure in partnership with Sustrans. The updated estimate for the parts of the project which can be delivered by the Scheme is £26.5 million,
4. A suite of river restoration interventions, through a new multiple-benefits project authorised by East Lothian Council in August 2022, known as Musselburgh River Esk Restoration.

The Scottish Government will contribute 80% of the cost of the scheme.