The new River Spey catchment management plan was published in November (see here) and announced by the Cairngorms National Park Authority in December. The first plan was in 2003 (see here), the year the CNPA was created, and a review of progress conducted in 2015 was published earlier in 2016 (see here). Its yet another…
Tag: planning
After the Strathy’s excellent coverage of the Save the Ciste Group’s criticisms of what is happening at Cairngorm (see here) it was inevitable that Natural Retreats would try and suggest that they are in fact doing lots to improve the skiing experience at Cairngorm and the article above duly appeared last week. While the work…
At the Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority Board Meeting on 12th December Bob Ellis, the Board Member on the Local Access Forum, reported he had been to visit the Loch Chon campsite and suggested other Board Members might also visit. Having visited last Sunday to look at the work in progress I recommend they…
I have been meaning for several months to blog about the Bruar hydro scheme but have been prompted to do so by recent praise from the Cairngorms National Park Authority’s for their own planning performance (see here). I am not disputing there may have been improvements in certain aspects of the National Park’s planning performance,…
Ten days ago I raised question about how much Natural Retreats is actually investing at Cairngorm (see here). The question of who is responsible for investing what at Cairngorm is complicated and not easy to see from the lease between Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Natural Retreats (I am working on it). This FOI response …
Donald Trump was in the national media at the weekend for failing to keep to the planning agreements he had made at the Menie golf course North of Aberdeen. While this should have come as no surprise to those who have followed that saga there are similarities with how Natural Retreats have acted at Cairngorm. …
In 2013 the Cairngorms National Park Authority was informed about the extension and expansion of hill tracks on the Dinnet Estate owned by former CNPA Board Member Marcus Humphrey. These works had been undertaken without planning permission by Findrack Investments Ltd who lease the shooting (both deer and grouse as far as I am aware)…
On 24th November the Scottish Government finally announced it has agreed the permanent re-introduction of beavers to Scotland. Despite beavers being role in improving water quality, flood prevention and promoting more diverse habitiats and species, all objectives of the Scottish Government, the “decision” was far from a foregone conclusion. The whole process shows the power…
Natural Retreats included this graphic in its announcement that its guided walks to the summit of Cairngorm had stopped for another year. It tells us a lot of what is going wrong at Cairngorm. The walks cost £20 a shot which means Natural Retreats earned £36,640 from them…
A month ago I received a response from the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority about their involvement in the west Riverside side and Flamingo Land. In their letter eir-2016-051-responseb the Park have tried to defend their integrity as a planning authority and their ability to make an independent judgement on the Flamingo Land…
On Tuesday I learned from one of the good folk at the North East Mountain Trust that a helicopter had been seen at Cairngorm carrying the sandbags, which had been sitting in Coire na Ciste, into the area by the Shieling Rope tow area. Last night I was sent some photos. Its not clear to…
The Owen McKee case (see here), which I last considered a couple of months ago (see here), is on the agenda for the Loch Lomond and Trossachs Board Meeting on Monday. Owen McKee was the former convener of the LLTNPA planning committee who, after approving the Cononish goldmine, started trading in the shares of…
The CNPA planning committee is today but there is NOTHING on the agenda on the retrospective application for the Shieling Hill track or other works which Natural Retreats undertook without planning permission(see here). The deadline for determining the planning application was 6th October so I thought it might appear but the CNPA planning portal still…
As the gateway to Loch Lomond and the unofficial capital of Scotland’s first National Park the village of Balloch should be the jewel in the crown of Loch Lomond and one of Scotland’s top tourist destinations. However, it has it has failed to live up to this billing for some time now which, in part, is due…
Breaches of the planning permission granted by Highland Council to Natural Retreats to replace the West Wall poma return wheel and re-landscape the off-ramp have been continuing (see here) The Planning Method Statement required “All fuelling and oils to be carried out in appropriate areas” and stated this would be “outside top station garage,…
Last week the Heritage Lottery Fund announced that it had awarded £2.34m to the Tomintoul & Glenlivet Landscape Partnership in the northern part of the Cairngorms National Park to deliver 20 projects over a four year period (see here). The plans include: Tomintoul Museum will become a Discovery Centre and tourist hub Blairfindy Castle and Scalan, an…
A week ago, on the same day that the consultation on the new Park Partnership Plan closed, the Cairngorms National Park Authority approved the Cairngorm Glenmore Strategy (see here). This had been subject to public consultation earlier this year. All the detailed visitor management proposals which were in the consultation draft have been stripped…
The Observer on Sunday ran a full page article by Kevin McKenna on Flamingo Land’s appointment as preferred developer for the west riverside side in Balloch (see here and here). I normally enjoy reading Kevin McKenna but did wonder if this is the same Kevin McKenna who had previously lambasted the development in an entertaining…
After my last post on the Glen Falloch hydro schemes, which featured the blue penstock by Derrydarroch in the photo above, I asked the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park when this penstock was going to be re-painted. The LLTNPA had approved a plan in February that showed native trees were to be planted…
I walked over Morrone from Corriemulizie by Braemar last Monday on a showery day. What I saw got me thinking about what the draft Cairngorms Partnership Plan said about paths and tracks. The public consultation on this ended officially this weekend but people can continue to influence this. The plan says nothing about the…
In May 2015 Natural Retreats were granted planning permission to Highland Council to replace the “floating” top wheel of the West Wall poma lift with a fixed wheel and to extend the run by 40m subject to certain conditions. The Cairngorms National Park Authority, in their wisdom, did not call in this application unlike the…
Following my post questioning the Cairngorms National Park Authority assertion that grouse moors bring much needed employment to the National Park see here, on Sunday I went for a walk round the western half of the Dinnet estate via the summit of Morven. My main intention was to look at the unlawful hill tracks…
The proposed Flamingo Land development of the west riverside side at Balloch was covered by an interesting article in the Sunday Herald (and I say that not just because I was quoted in it) which made links between the proposed camping ban and the proposed development. Ultimately this is about what National Parks are for…
Today, the LLTNPA will decide its planning application to itself for a campsite at Loch Chon. There are now 54 documents associated with this proposal and I hope the members of the Planning Committee read the objections as well as the Committee Report. There are several issues about the campsite which are very relevant…
– by Ross MacBeath At the public meeting with Strathard Community Council, Gordon Watson, the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority Chief Executive, tried to justify the creation of a large campsite at Loch Chon by referring to the campsite at Sallochy, on east Loch Lomond. While this is also on Forestry Commission land,…