McLaughlin & Harvey has announced that it has filled the tank in the iconic Granton Gas Holder frame in preparation for the site to become a public park in the future.

Approximately 50,000 tonnes of material have been placed and compacted within the 11 by 78-meter tank in preparation for the installation of the bentonite membrane. This comes after the tank walls and bell were removed last year.

Work is undergoing on the steel which makes up the structure with every steel member being looked at and repaired if required. This involves replacing corroded sections or filling holes. To repaint the structure the process involves blasting it with cooper ore, which removes the old lead paint and corrosion, cleaning it down and prepping the surfaces. Then priming coats before the final paint colour.

McLaughlin & Harvey is completing the work on behalf of the council using £16.4 million from the UK Government’s Levelling Up Fund. As well as an additional £1.2 million from the Scottish Government.

Once works are completed there will be multi-sensory play zones, a dedicated area for public art and an area for relaxation, outdoor trails, and tracks for exercise. As well as a large outdoor space for sports, markets, seasonal events, community use, festivals, performance arts, exhibitions, and play. In order to improve biodiversity and local habitat, trees, shrubs and wildflowers will also be planted.

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Cammy Day, Council leader at The City of Edinburgh Council, said: "It’s exciting to see this footage and the culmination of all the hard work that has already gone into bringing this fantastic project to life for the area. The transformation of the structure will give the local community a much-needed place to come together to enjoy arts, sports, and culture. The project forms part of the wider £1.3 billion regeneration of the Granton area where we are unlocking brownfield land to build a new sustainable 20-minute neighbourhood. We’re continuing to work hard to ensure Granton is somewhere residents will be proud to live and I look forward to seeing progress continue throughout this year."

Graham Brown, Senior Contracts Manager at McLaughlin & Harvey, stated: "We are delighted to have reached another milestone on this exciting project. The Gas Holder tank has been dewatered, demolished and infilled alongside the ongoing structural frame refurbishment works. This has involved in-depth logistical planning to ensure both aspects of the project can progress side by side whilst ensuring the safety of our workforce. The finished paint surface is also progressing well under the cover of our immense scaffold structure and in the coming months we will commence the public realm works as the final phase of the project."

Joe Fitzpatrick MSP, Scotland's Planning Minister said: "Derelict sites can be a blight on communities and often hold back development. The Scottish Government’s low carbon Vacant and Derelict Land Investment Programme is helping to unlock these sites by providing investment to create great places for people to enjoy, regenerating communities and tackling climate change. I am delighted that £1.2 million from the programme is supporting this transformative project on this historic site with the creation of a biodiverse, multi-use, and accessible park within the frame of the gas holder, opening it up to public access for the first time."