The Spey Catchment Initiative, Pitmain and the failure of conservation in the Cairngorms National Park - parkswatchscotland On 22nd July the Strathy reported (see here) the Spey Catchment Initiative (SCI) is planning to consult the local community before using “ecological engineering” techniques to restore the eroded banks...

Sporting landowners will remain happy with the Cairngorms National Park so long as it supports projects which make no ecological sense, do little or nothing to further conservation and does nothing to challenge the way they mis-use the land parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/07/25/t...

The National Park and Scottish Enterprise's land deal at the Pierhead - designed to make Flamingo Land happen - parkswatchscotland Following my post in June (see here) about how about the transfer of land from Scottish Enterprise (SE) to the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority (LLTNPA) appeared to be paving the way ...

How public land and resources are still being abused to support Flamingo Land's proposed development at Balloch. What will it take for Kate Forbes and Mairi Gougeon to intervene? parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/07/24/t...

Stobo Hope, Scottish Forestry & the dubious claims made by commercial forestry interests - parkswatchscotland It is over six months since I blogged about how the crisis facing commercial forestry interests at Stobo Hope in the Borders (see here). Since then a successful judicial review by the Stobo Residents ...

Stobo Hope is a test case for much that is wrong with Scottish Forestry and forestry in Scotland. This post critiques the claims being made on the developers new website, claims that are being used across Scotland to justify the unjustifiable parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/07/23/s...

Glen Lednock Wind Farm - parkswatchscotland [Ed’s note. My apologies to Felicity Martin who wrote this briefing on the Glen Lednock windfarm application for Parkswatch 10 days ago but which I managed to miss while away. (I have added the illust...

When Oxygen Conservation bought Glen Lednock with a massive loan from Triodos bank they failed to explain they would need to build a wimdfarm to pay it back. Felicity Martin explains why the proposed planning application is so wrong parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/07/21/g...

Abrdn's legacy at Far Ralia as paid for by Scottish Forestry - another environmental liability in the Cairngorms National Park - parkswatchscotland In December abrdn told the Scotsman that they had made mistakes with their carbon offsetting tree planting scheme at Far Ralia, the land they had bought for £6.5m in 2021 and are now trying to sell. W...

When are the Scottish Government & our National Parks going to look at what land speculators - aka investors - are actually doing on the ground as a result of their obsession with tree planting targets and courtesy of the Scottish Forestry grants system? parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/07/18/a...

The Lomond and Trossachs National Park's approach to both deer control and control of non-native species is fallow and shallow parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/07/15/f...

Unacceptable telecommunications masts (29) - the new plan for Scotland from the Shared Rural Network - parkswatchscotland Ten days ago the Shared Rural Network (SRN) programme announced (see here) that they were scaling the £500m UK Government funded programme to erect telecommunications masts in Total Not Spots, areas w...

The recent decision of the Shares Rural Network programme to reduce the number of phone masts in total not spots has been driven by financial interests rather than any concern by government about Scotland's landscape parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/07/10/u...

Allowing Flamingo Land to write the legal agreement which is supposed to protect the public interest at Balloch represents complete capitulation to development interests & is like letting private suppliers of goods and services write their own contracts parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/07/08/f...

The management of the Scottish Fire & Rescue Service who have no systems in place to monitor muirburn & appear completely unconcerned about its impacts should now explain if it reduces fire risks as claimed why have the fires on Dava Moor been so big? parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/07/01/k...

Ivan McKee's decision to call in Flamingo Land's planning appeal - what needs to change - parkswatchscotland In my post on the Scottish Government’s decision to call in the Flamingo Land application for a decision by Scottish Ministers (see here), I highlighted the fact that the Planning Minister, Ivan McKee...

The power of Scottish Ministers to call-in planning applications should provide a safeguard against failures to protect the public interest but in the case of Flamingo Land is part of the problem, undemocratic, unaccountable & a misuse of power parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/06/29/i...

Time to stop the sales of what should be public land in Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park, SE to Flamingo Land, FLS to private forestry interests and RSFS at Cashel - this post argues there is an alternative at Cashel, transfer the land for free to NTS parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/06/27/t...

It doesn't appear that anyone in government knows how many sporting estates, like Gkencalvie, burn the land to increase deer numbers or have thought through how they will implement the Scottish Government's commitment to end this damaging practise parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/06/25/m...

The Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park's spending and management priorities for outdoor recreation are completely wrong, focussing on it's own interests rather than the visitor infrastructure the public needs parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/06/23/t...

The importance of the battle for Harvie's Dyke for access rights - parkswatchscotland The Royal Society of Edinburgh and the Society of Antiquaries for Scotland organised a very interesting talk his week by Professor Chris Watley about the access battle at Harvie’s Dyke.  This is recom...

parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/06/19/t...

It says something about Highlands and Islands Enterprise that not only does it channel endless public funds to support its business subsidiary at Cairngorm Mountain but, as Graham Garfoot explains, allows it to commit daylight robbery too parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/06/18/h...

Campaign to save Strathyre Forest and its wildlife - parkswatchscotland Following my post on Forest and Land Scotland’s Larch Removal Plan in Strathyre, which would decimate the forest and its wildlife (see here),  the local community has set up a campaign to stop the des...

I forgot to advertise my latest post on Strathyre and the failure of Scottish Forestry & Forest and Land Scotland to consult the local community while I was away climbing last week. It's good to see it's attracted a range of interesting comments parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/06/11/c....

Paving the way for Flamingo Land - Scottish Enterprise's transfer of land at the pierhead to the National Park Authority - parkswatchscotland The Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority (LLTNPA) Board duly agreed (see here) at their meeting yesterday to do nothing further to oppose the proposed Lomond Banks development.  They have...

The story of how the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority and Scottish Government are aiding and abetting the Flamingo Land development at Balloch gets worse and worse parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/06/10/p...

Flamingo Land, the democratic deficit & how LLTNPA staff are oiling the wheels for the development to now go ahead - parkswatchscotland The Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority (LLTNPA) board meeting on Monday (9th June) is being asked to consider a paper “Process and timeline Re: PPA-002-2021 Notice of Intention Lomond B...

After their weak objection to the Flamingo Land Planning application, Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park Authority board members will be told tomorrow by senior staff who backed this development from the start to throw in the towel. What National Park?
parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/06/06/f...

Forest and Land Scotland's mismanagement of access and access rights in Strathyre - parkswatchscotland I spotted this sign on my return from walking over Ben Ledi last week (see here). While we walked round the locked gate easily enough and most cyclists could too, it would be a different matter for an...

The National Forest Estate, owned by us, should be exemplifying good practice in relation to the management of access rights and core paths but under Forestry and Land Scotland is doing the opposite with the tacit consent of the National Park Authority parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/06/02/f...

Forest and Land Scotland's mismanagement of Strathyre - the Ben Ledi footpath - parkswatchscotland On Tuesday I went with friends who were staying for a walk over Ben Ledi, a chance to consider further how Forest and Land Scotland (FLS) are managing the land they own in Strathyre (see here) from a ...

FLS & the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority are failing to fulfil their obligations to maintain paths on Ben Ledi and other hills funded by the National Lottery. As a result those paths are falling to bits & the investment wasted parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/05/30/f...

The judgement issued by the Supreme Court last week has positive implications for outdoor recreation across the UK & should make it harder for those who have been trying to undermine access rights in Scotland, including both our National Parks, to do so parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/05/26/t...

Flamingo Land promised net zero for their development at Balloch but it's owner now backs Reform UK which is committed to scrap net zero. Every reason for the Scottish Government to call in the appeal which I consider here parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/05/21/t...

HIE is still hiding the truth about the funicular at Cairn Gorm - parkswatchscotland On 2nd May Highlands and Islands Enterprise announced (see here) that having re-opened the funicular on 27/02/2025, after one and a half years of repair work, it would be closing it again on  12/05/20...

HIE's decision to close the funicular to "fine tune" the repairs during May, often the best weather month in Scotland, may appear stupid but not if HIE knows the funicular will never be fixed and the repairs neverending parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/05/17/h...

The proposal to plant Coire na Ciste on Cairn Gorm - a new low for conservation in the National Park - parkswatchscotland A month ago, on 15th April, the Spey Catchment Initiative (SCI), a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO), formed in December 2022 issued a news release announcing it was to plant 30,000...

The Spey Catchment Initiative is rapidly turning into a conservation disaster and the Cairngorms National Park Authority has been unwise enough to support it and it's crazy plan for Cairn Gorm parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/05/16/t...

Ecocide in Strathyre? FLS' Larch Removal Plan & the destruction of biodiversity - parkswatchscotland Forest and Land Scotland (FLS)’s landholding Strathyre, which runs north from Callander to Balquhidder, provides perhaps the best example of mixed woodland in the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Pa...

Instead of protecting nature, Forest and Land Scotland appears hell bent on destroying it with the tacit approval of NatureScot and the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/05/14/e...

Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority and access: challenging the propaganda - parkswatchscotland The propaganda The reality First the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority (LLTNPA) went after the campers, confining them to a few “permit areas” around the loch shores; then they went fo...

By obstructing people's ability to exercise access rights and undermining local traditions of enjoying the bonnie banks the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority is undermining support for National Parks in Scotland parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/05/08/l...

David Craig explains Vodafone's plan to enable their customers to make calls through satellites next year. How long till Vodafone withdraws from the Shared Rural Network programme to erect telecommunications masts in Wild Land Areas? parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/05/07/u...

NatureScot & the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service - denying that muirburn causes wildfires - parkswatchscotland On 18th April landowners and land management interests launched a concerted campaign claiming that rather muirburn being a significant cause of wildfire it was a means of preventing it (see here for B...

The Scottish Parliament need to grill the management of NatureScot and the Scottish Fire & Rescue Service about why they won't criticise muirburn even at times of very high risk and the number of wildfires caused by muirburn in the recent dry period parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/04/29/n...

When will landowners and managers face consequences for the destruction caused by muirburn? The case of Glen Banchor - parkswatchscotland The Tinto Hills Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)  (see here) was not the only protected area to be destroyed by muirburn during the periods of high fire risk this Spring.  The muirburn trigg...

So what will NatureScot and the Cairngorms National Park do about the wildfire in Glen Banchor and to prevent the damage caused by muirburn in future? The answer is nothing meaningful unless the public protest parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/04/28/w...

Muirburn and wildfires - the case of the Tinto Hills SSSI (Site of Severe Scorching and Incineration) - parkswatchscotland Since my post on how muirburn is responsible for a significant number of wildfires (see here) I have been contacted by a number of readers who have provided further information and photographs includi...

NatureScot, the public authority responsible for failing to protect the recently incinerated Tinto Hill SSSI will also be responsible for the Muirburn licensing scheme. Unbelievably it is proposing to weaken the very weak Muirburn Code still further parkswatchscotland.co.uk/2025/04/26/m...