IT IS the Battle for Battery Rocks, a contest between conservation and commerce which is dividing a Cornish town.

In the eye of the storm is a small but historic headland, bathed in myths from the dawn of Penzance.

At stake – some would argue – is a town at a turning point, whose very future is under threat.

But this is no pie-in-the-sky debate because on the table is £44 million – and the clock is ticking to spend it before it is snatched away.

"There is no doubt that this is about the future of Penzance," said Mike Waters, chairman of the town's chamber of commerce.

"This is about whether anyone will do business with us now or in the future."

In most ways, the project to improve passenger and freight handling facilities at both ends of the Isles of Scilly sea link is absolutely uncontroversial.

No-one would argue that facilities in Penzance or on St Mary's are not woefully out of date.

On Scilly, the plan to upgrade the terminal on St Mary's has won wholehearted backing from islanders who fervently believe their community faces a long, slow death without it.

But at Penzance, the blueprint to build an all-in-one terminal for passengers and freight has become a minefield. The scheme put forward by the Route Partnership, the Cornwall Council-led consortium behind the £44 million plan, has been accused of destroying an iconic part of the town's coastline at Battery Rocks.

Environmental campaigner John Maggs founded the Friends of Penzance Harbour within hours of clapping eyes on the plans when they first became available last year.

He said: "I just couldn't believe what I was seeing. It was disbelief.

"The exhibition was at St John's Hall in Penzance and I went back three or four times that day to see again and to talk to people.

"By about 5pm, the crowds had built up and people were getting quite angry.

"There was a collective sigh."

Mr Maggs, an expert on shipping and greenhouse gas emissions who works as a consultant for the European-wide pressure group Seas at Risk, said that he knew immediately that action had to be taken.

The group called itself Friends of Penzance Harbour (FoPH), and it is backing an option which would see an out-of-town freight depot established with bulky items shuttled in and out to the ferry.

On the passenger front, a new terminal would be created in the shell of the former Trinity House Museum, just opposite the docks.

However, an independent report estimated that this could force prices in the Scillies up by a quarter – a bitter pill for an admittedly well-subsidised community but one with an already high cost of living.

The FoPH group has succeeded in becoming a thorn in the side of the Route Partnership.

Last week, senior Cornwall councillor Graeme Hicks, cabinet member for highways, transport and planning, dismissed group members as a "vociferous minority" and "small-minded".

It is a claim the FoPH denies, citing a 400-strong mailing list – although the "organising core" is about a dozen people. The group's members are not alone in rejecting the scheme – Penzance Civic Society is another critic.

Chairman John Moreland said the aesthetic implications to the town's beautiful old harbour were being overlooked.

"We have real concerns about the architectural aspect of this scheme," he added.

For Coun Hicks, there is a real sense of frustration which has underpinned his outspoken comments.

He said: "This money is vital for Penzance and the Isles of Scilly.

"We have waited a long time to get the funding in place and now we are faced with the very real prospect that it could be taken away.

"That would be disastrous."

Considering what was at stake, Coun Hicks said the loss of the beach at Battery Rocks was a price worth paying. "The council has had to carefully access any environmental impact with all the economic issues.

"We have judged that the most important factor in this case is to ensure that an efficient and improved sea link is provided which recognises that the freight charges to a distant and vulnerable island community must be kept to an absolute minimum, to ensure the future sustainability of the isles.

"We believe we can justify the loss of a relatively little-used gravely cove.

"We are blessed in Cornwall with probably the best beaches in Western Europe – it would be ridiculous to claim that Battery Rocks 'beach' is one of them. The people who do so clearly need to widen their horizons."

He said the council had bent over backwards to accommodate opponents of the scheme.

The authority has worked up an alternative planning application for the out-of-town depot "at the 11th hour".

The planning applications for both options are due to be submitted next week in four parts, meaning the works required would not constitute a major development and could be determined within eight weeks.

The arguments have become increasingly bitter in the last few weeks, with Coun Hicks even launching a broadside at St Ives MP Andrew George, who he accused of "dithering".

The MP, who is holding a public meeting at St John's Hall tonight, starting at 7.30pm, received a rough ride from islanders during meetings on Scilly earlier this week.

For the FoPH, there is no apology for fighting and no climbdown.

"The Route Partnership is putting at risk that funding," said Mr Maggs.

"The solution to the problem is there and all they have to do is embrace it and get on with it. If they insist on bringing back their (favoured) option, we will continue fighting it."