My thanks to Stella Bray who asked Patrick Harvie, Leader of the Greens, his view of the camping byelaws in an online question and answer session before the election https://www.facebook.com/ScottishGreens/videos/10154164579926170/ His response appears 39 mins and 39 seconds into the video and is worth listening to. He clearly states that there is no justification for…
Tag: LLTNPA
The Scotsman three weeks ago http://www.scotsman.com/news/environment/loch-lomond-and-trossachs-named-top-of-uk-beauty-spots-1-4121929 carried an article on how the National Geographic Traveller magazine had voted Loch Lomond and the Trossachs Britain’s top National Park because of its stunning landscapes and called it a “Scottish Haven”. One wonders if anyone voting has passed through Glen Falloch in the past year and witnessed the…
I had never driven along the Forest Drive, a forest track open to public motor vehicles, that goes from the Dukes Pass north of Aberfoyle to Loch Achray in the Trossachs until Monday. The Drive, and the land 200m on either side of it which is owned by Forestry Commission Scotland, is included in what…
On the way to pick up Nick Kempe from Balloch Station to look at proposed Trossachs Camping Management Zones I passed Duck Bay picnic area at about 09.30 on Monday 17/05/2016, after a very pleasant and presumably busy weekend. I do not know who is responsible for maintaining the picnic area, but it does represent…
I was out looking at the proposed Trossachs Camping Management Zone with Nick Halls on Monday. Nick is a compulsive litter picker and spotted an abandoned tent on the west shore of Loch Achray so we pulled into the Ben Venue carpark, operated by Forestry Commission Scotland and picked it up. There are no litter…
In April the Standards Commission decided that Owen McKee, the former convener of Planning for the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park who had been trading in the shares of the Cononish goldmine, had breached the Code of Conduct for Standards in Public Life. They would have suspended him if he had not resigned https://parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2016/04/20/owen-mckee-hearing-standards-commission-2/ …
David Lintern, the wild land photographer who writes for Walk Highland, contacted me last week about the Ben Glas hydro scheme, above the Beinglas farm campsite at the head of Loch Lomond. He has written a heartfelt and poetic piece on his blog http://www.davidlintern.com/blog/ about this, along with photos which show the destruction that is taking…
The failure of Aileen McLeod to be re-elected to the Scottish Parliament means there will be a new Minister for the Environment in the new Scottish Government. This post – which is responsible for our National Parks – has existed, under one title or another, since the creation of the Scottish Parliament. Dr McLeod was…
When Aileen McLeod, the Minister for the Environment, approved the camping byelaws she made a couple of conditions, that the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park produce annual reports and undertake a three year review. The Park had previously undertaken a review of the east Loch Lomond byelaws, which was deeply flawed, but which they…
I have come across a few pieces in the media over the last two weeks which I believe show just how out of touch the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority are in their attempt to stamp out camping and fires. Beltane, fires and the Park Beltane, one of four Gaelic seasonal festivals, was…
In the Government Press release announcing the camping byelaws Dr McLeod made a powerful claim to justify her decision: “The evidence that I have seen of damage caused, particularly in some of the most environmentally fragile spots in the National Park, tells a compelling tale of the need for action. Abandoned campsites, discarded litter,…
Last week I received EIR 2016-003 Review Response from the LLTNPA which confirmed their decision not to release information about why they had decided to develop a campsite at Loch Chon https://parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2016/03/27/con-loch-chon-proposed-trossachs-west-camping-management-zone/. I will appeal to the FOI Commissioner (my fourth appeal, the first two of which have resulted in the Park releasing information and…
Four months after Owen McKee’s resignation as Convener of the Planning Committee for failing to declare his trading in the Cononish goldmine shares, the LLTNPA Board appointed him to the Audit Committee – the committee whose function is to ensure the good governance of the Park! While it is possible to understand the reluctance…
The Standards Commission held its Hearing into Owen McKee, the former Convener of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park’s Planning Committee who had been trading in the shares of the Cononish goldmine, while I was away last week. They decided that, had he not resigned from the Park last August, they would have suspended…
I have been away for a week but last Sunday Rob Edwards reported on the purchase of part of the Rothiemurchus estate by the FCS in the Sunday Herald – the full story can be found at https://theferret.scot/1m-tax-sweetener-cairngorms-land-deal/ It raises some critical questions about the role of FCS in our National Parks. How is…
The Standards Commission has arranged a hearing for Owen McKee, the former Board Member of Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park’s Authority who failed to declare he was trading in shares in the Cononish Goldmine, at 11.00 am on Tuesday 12th April at the the LLTNPA HQ, Carrochan, Balloch. I also understand that the Commissioner…
There was more press coverage last week about the reduction in cycle storage capacity on the West Highland Line http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/14388363.Campaigners_warn_that_train_refurbishments_will_slash_space_for_bikes/ On Friday I received a response to my letter to Gordon Watson about whether the Park had made any representations about the impact this would have on tourism in the Park. I covered the…
On Friday I took advantage of the only good day forecast for the holiday weekend to visit Loch Chon (dog loch) before going for a walk over Beinn a Choin (Ben of the dogs). Most of the road between Aberfoyle and Inversnaid, covering Loch Ard, Loch Chon and Loch Arklet is part of the proposed…
A copy of Voice, the excellent publication from the Friends of Loch Lomond and Trossachs (I am a member), arrived in the post this morning. Voice gives over a page of the publication to Gordon Watson, LLTNP Chief Executive, to provide an update from the Park Authority. It includes a section on the proposed camping…
As a result of campaigning against the proposed camping byelaws, I have uncovered a number of failings in respect to how the LLTNPA operates, many of which concern a lack of openness and what I would describe as cover-ups. Today I received further proof of this. I hope you will bear with me while I…
KPMG, one of the big four accountancy firms, have acted as internal auditors for our two National Parks from 2011/12. Just why public authorities would want to appoint KPMG, who have as auditors failed to pick major failings with banks such as HBOS or the Coop and organisations such as FIFA, is a mystery…
On Monday I drove along the A 82 stopping at laybys & sites used for camping along the Loch side. Most of the land is owned by Luss Estates who last year blamed campers for the state of the country-side http://lussestates.co.uk/news/litter-problem-worsens-wild -campers Apart from the usual litter thrown from car traffic, which is ubiquitous throughout…
When I was out on Monday on west Loch Lomondside I was struck by the number of cyclists. It was a lovely sunny day and lots of people were out on the main National Cycle route. Get the West Highland Line to Tarbert and cycle back to Glasgow or Dumbarton- a great day out. …
I have long wondered why Scottish Land and Estates, the organisation representing landowners, was so vocal in its support for camping bye-laws. After all Forestry Commission Scotland is by far the largest landowner in the National Park and the voluntary sector, including the Woodland Trust, NTS, RSPB and Royal Scottish Forestry Society also own sizeable…
After a morning looking around west Loch Lomond (to be covered in future posts) I attended today’s LLTNPA Board Meeting as an observer with Peter and Mary Jack from the Loch Lomond Association. A member of Buchanan Community Council had also turned up to see how the Board operates. In governance terms the March meeting…