Following my last post (see here) on Natural Retreats, they have now started further work to re-locate the return wheel at the top of the West Wall poma lift.   Suffice to say just now (I hope to do a further post tomorrow with photos of what has been going on) that the creation of a building site was never included in the planning application.

 

The building site is on the upper slopes of Cairngorm, a place so sensitive that when planning approval was given to funicular this was on condition that visitors could not exit the top station in summer because of the damage their feet would cause.   This was sealed by the public authorities involved, Highland Council, Scottish Natural Heritage and Highlands and Islands Enterprise as the landowner with a binding legal agreement.

 

Just over 15 years later those same authorities – and Highland Council are responsible for planning enforcement in this case because the Cairngorms National Park Authority in their wisdom did not call in the planning application – are just sitting by while Natural Retreats trashes the hillside.   Morrison’s, when constructing the funicular were closely supervised and would never have been allowed to do this.   This is indefensible.   Its about time that the CNPA said enough is enough at Cairngorm and started to take a proactive lead to sort out the mess that HIE has created through their appointment of Natural Retreats to operate the ski area.

 

While the Tories were calling in the Scottish Parliament yesterday for more National Parks to be created, none of our politicians are taking any real interest in the current failures of our National Parks.  This is epitomised by what Natural Retreats is doing at Cairngorm and what Flamingo Land is likely to do on Loch Lomond.

 

There was an interesting letter in the Herald today calling on a new body to be set up to supervise our National Parks and steer them back to the ideals that led to them being created in the first place.   I couldn’t help thinking it would be much simpler if Roseanna Cunningham, the Cabinet Secretary for the Environment, just gave them a steer but so far there has been no lead from the Scottish Government either.