The development would be Scotland's biggest ever hydro scheme but objectors warn it could damage tourism.

BBC: Highland councillors support Lochaber hydro plan

The pump storage hydro scheme is designed to "soak up" excess power generated by wind and wave farms, using it to pump water up to a reservoir.

BBC: Highland councillors support Lochaber hydro plan

Scottish and Southern Energy Renewables has applied to build Scotland's biggest ever hydro electric scheme at the west end of the Great Glen.

BBC: The Great Glen, picture taken by Fiona Carr

The organisation said its own studies suggested a hydro-electric scheme at Castlefields weir was financially viable.

BBC: Weir at Shrewsbury

Eden Valley initiatives include a campaign to get people to buy locally, moves to supply fast broadband services to rural areas and a hydro-power scheme for the River Eden.

BBC: Volunteers speak up for Big Society

It draws on both art and industry, says Jin Choi, citing the twin inspirations of Giacometti's spindly, elongated sculptures, and massed pylons marching away from a hydro-electric scheme in Quebec.

BBC: Could pylons ever be pretty?

Mr Simplot himself, an avowed lover of skiing, duck shooting and the great outdoors, was attacked in the 1970s for his support for new coal-fired electricity plants along the Snake river and for a scheme to generate hydro-power by diverting water from another river into a vast underground tube.

ECONOMIST: Jack Simplot

The scheme is based on the same principle as Dinorwig's First Hydro plant in Llanberis.

BBC: The view down into the top quarry - Chwarel Fawr

Mr Nutting said the land earmarked for the hydro turbine was jointly owned by the town council and Shropshire Council and the scheme could provide a return for both authorities.

BBC: Weir at Shrewsbury