In March 2019 the First Minister of Scotland declared a Global Climate Emergency. The Scottish Government has set a net-zero emissions target for 2045 and to increase the targets for 2030 to 70% and to 90% in 2040. These are ambitious targets which will certainly not be achieved simply by stating them and the Scottish…
The visual impact of electricity pylons in National Parks and Areas of Outstanding National Beauty have been a political issue for some time in England and Wales. In response to public pressure, a £500m UK wide fund was created to help underground powerlines. Scotland was allocated a share of this but development of proposals…
I first came across the newly constructed Gynack flood diversion channel above Kingussie by accident in October 2017, when visiting the three hydro schemes on the river. I have visited three times since, all in poor weather (as is evident from the photos!). On my most recent visit I found that the overflow…
This short video was sent to me with the message “take you mind off politics for a moment”! It shows all the wildlife which used a log to cross a stream in Pennsylvania during the course of a year. Most enjoyable – do watch – but I couldn’t escape the political implications. There could hardly…
In September, the local SNP Councillor for North, West and Central Sutherland, Kirsteen Currie (see here), lodged a petition with the Scottish Parliament petitions Committee to create no wild camp zones in Scotland (see here). The petition was prompted by perceived concerns with the impact of camping and campervanning along the North Coast 500 (see…
The Cairn Gorm ski area: Voluntary Organisations call for an open debate about the future A group of voluntary organisations (The Cairngorms Campaign, Campaign for a Better Cairngorm, North East Mountain Trust, Ramblers Scotland and the Scottish Wild Land Group.) has produced a ‘vision’ for the future of the mountain (below). Key elements include the…
I am in Australia, having travelled from a country where soils and vegetation are being washed away by water (see here) to one where they are being ravaged by fire. Both fire and flood have been triggered by extreme weather events which are a consequence of the global climate and environmental crisis. In Australia there have…
The Boat Registration Audit, undertaken by West Dunbartonshire Council, was considered by the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority’s Audit and Risk Committee on 29th June 2019 (see here item 6) “1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY General An audit was conducted on the Boat Registration Process. The review covered the registration and the re-registration process for…
In September the Balavil Estate submitted a Prior Notification to Highland Council to upgrade/create 8 roads AFTER it had started construction work on one of them (see here). By the time of that post Balavil had agreed with the Cairngorms National Park Authority to suspend work on the new road and they had also withdrawn…
[Ed note: for earlier post on this meeting (see here)] Under the Convenership of James Stuart it has become a feature of Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority Board Meetings that they are held in venues other than Park Headquarters – Callander Youth Project; Brig O Turk Village Hall; Balmaha Visitor Centre and most recently…
Highlands and Islands Enterprises (HIE) last month released estimates for the costs of removal and repair of the Funicular Railway (see here) which was taken out of operation 15 months ago after concerns were raised about the safety of the structure. The “high end” estimate for removal is £13.3M, with a provision of £9.6M in…
The Scottish Government approved the camping byelaws in January 2016 on condition that the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority would create new camping infrastructure. 300 new camping places were promised for the first year and the Scottish Government delayed implementation of the byelaws by a year to give the LLTNPA time to put…
After Highlands and Islands Enterprise announced that the cost of repairing the funicular would be cheaper than the cost they claimed would be needed to remove it, I asked them for the basis of this claim. Then, when the response revealed very little, I requested a formal review of their decision to refuse the information…
Prior to the serious flood damage to some of the hydro schemes in Glen Falloch (see here), I had been trying to persuade the Convener of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority, James Stuart, that there have been some serious planning failures in respect to hydro schemes in the National Park which his Board…
The Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority held its quarterly Board meeting last Thursday (see here) in Kinlochard Village Hall, in Strathard. Almost everything about the meeting, from the location to the agenda items to the discussion, illustrated complacency about the declaration of a climate emergency by the Scottish Government six months ago. …
Background On the 27 January 2019 I applied to Highlands and Islands Enterprise for the two “ADAC Structures” Inspection reports which resulted in the Funicular Railway being closed. The redacted reports were finally released on Friday 11th October after a request to the Scottish Information Commissioner. This post will look at the Funicular Railway Inspection…
My initial focus on the damage caused by the torrential rainfall at the start of August was on Glen Falloch, where I was surprised by the extent of the landslips (see here)and the damage to the hydro schemes (see here). A reader who lives in the Trossachs gently reminded me a few weeks ago that…
With the ongoing crisis at Cairn Gorm, the bungled planning applications and the question of the funicular, its important that people don’t forget how Highlands and Island’s enterprise created this pickle. After the decision to build the funicular in the first place, arguably HIE’s greatest mistake was the sale of Cairngorm Mountain Ltd to Natural…
I was pleased to be quoted in Sunday Herald article “Call for crackdown on unregulated Scottish hill tracks” (see here) which was published at the weekend. The article contains some very interesting quotes from the the landowner and owner of the Glen Clova hotel, Hugh Niven, about the apparently unlawful road which is now…
This post looks at how little of the ORP 2013-17 (see here for plan) has been fulfilled from a Water User’s perspective. At the time of writing this article there has been no sign of a new or even ‘refreshed’ Outdoor Recreation Plan to replace the outdated 2013-17 ORP. The Loch Lomond and the Trossachs…
Last Thursday a friend of mine who lives in the Lake District attended a packed extraordinary meeting of Keswick Town Council called to consider a motion of no confidence in the Lake District National Park Authority (LDNPA). The motion was prompted by the decision of the LDNPA to grant planning permission to itself to tarmac…
On my way north on Saturday I noticed that Ewich Forest, which is currently owned by Forest and Land Scotland, has been put up for sale. Ewich Forest is the block of conifer forest which extends from Crianlarich north along the west side of the A82. The West Highland Way traverses the forest from Crianlarich…
Following the great rainstorm of 5th August, which swept away part of the West Highland Line, I was expecting to find significant damage to the seven hydro roads in Glen Falloch when I visited at the end of September. In the event found that the damage which the storm caused to the hillsides, in…
The camping byelaws, which were intended to ban people from staying overnight in the four camping management zones without a permit, also allowed people to apply for exemptions in certain circumstances. These included Duke of Edinburgh award expeditions and Events requiring the erection of tents. This post takes a look at how the National Park…
The Funicular Railway on Cairn Gorm has now been out of service for more than a year. Its future remains unclear although Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) have said that it is their intention to have it repaired. Parkswatch has previously had a look at this from the point of view of skiers (see here) …