ACCESS & CONSERVATION NEWS
Reports by Mike Dales
(MCofS Access & Conservation Officer)
Snowholing and Sanitation –
A Timely Reminder
Snowholing Litter Exposed
Photographs we have received from the Cairngorms Ranger Service demonstrate an alarmingly lax attitude to the mountain environment from a rogue bunch of litter louts that regard themselves as mountaineers. The litter left behind in this way will be regarded as disgraceful by the vast majority of real mountaineers who strive to leave no trace of their visit. Mountain litter like this has the unfortunate effect of giving us all a bad name.
Snowholing carries an inherent problem in that any waste buried in the snow re-appears in the spring snow melt, which is when countryside rangers, if there is a service in the area, are the ones who have the thankless task of clearing up.
In bad weather it can be difficult to keep your equipment and waste food products together, but if you chose to go into an area because of its beauty, then you should strive to leave no trace of your visit on that area. Leaving any form of litter in the mountains is inexcusable.
MCofS Codes
These photographs provide us with the ideal opportunity to give a timely reminder about the various codes that the MCofS has produced over the years. The codes of best practice appear on our website and are well worth another read if you haven't checked them out for a while. The relevant MCofS Codes are: Human Sanitation, Wild Camping, Crag Code and the Winter Climbing Code.
Human Sanitation
The MCofS produced the “Where to 'Go' in the Great Outdoors” leaflet about 7 years ago, and this contained our advice on human sanitation in the outdoors. This advice is still on our website and recently caught the attention of the mainstream media. As a result the story was covered on the Radio 5 Live Breakfast Show, as well as Radio Scotland's Good Morning Scotland and Out of Doors.
The human sanitation issue is an important one for the MCofS to address. Whilst a piece of human excrement has a pretty small impact on the landscape compared to a 125 metre wind turbine, there are the obvious health issues to be concerned about and done badly it can be one of the biggest impacts we can have on the mountains we love to visit. The MCofS's approach therefore, has been to seek out what is best practice, to educate, and to encourage openness and discussion on what can be regarded as one of life's taboo subjects. So, to give a brief reminder of our advice in Scotland:
- Excrement should be buried wherever possible. Dig a shallow hole and bury it or cover it with soil and vegetation.
- Choose a place well away from running water to avoid polluting water courses.
- Burn toilet paper, but be extremely careful not to start a fire, and if you have any doubt then carry it out.
- Never miss an opportunity to use a proper toilet. In other words, try to avoid or reduce the need to go on the mountain by making the most of your last chance to go to a proper toilet. Better to stop at the public toilets in Crianlarich than urinating in the car park in Glencoe!
In preparation for the radio interviews we carried out a quick survey of visitors to our website to judge people's perceptions of the problem and to test their knowledge of best practice. Some of the results were quite interesting.
Those living in Scotland were most likely to perceive the problem as no worse than it was 10 years ago, whereas most of those living outwith Scotland thought it was deteriorating. The vast majority of respondents were doing the right thing in terms of covering their excrement rather than squashing it or leaving it in the open.
The two worst places for human waste problems on Scotland's mountains were Ben Nevis and the Cairngorms, with the CIC hut and Corrour Bothy being highlighted most often. With the Nevis Partnership and Cairngorms National Park (see separate article) in place and working on these issues we do have an opportunity to address, and hopefully resolve these problem areas.
Footpath Trust Re-launched
As one of the founding members of the British Upland Footpath Trust (BUFT) and provider of one of its Trustees, the MCofS played a major role in revitalising BUFT after a period of stagnation and inactivity. The first BUFT conference for seven years was held in Bangor (Wales) in September and attracted an audience of about 100 delegates from all over the UK and Ireland. Path funding problems and pathwork techniques were discussed, and a Monitoring Survey Report was launched (12 of these paths were surveyed by MCofS Access & Conservation Committee volunteers).
The mixture of path managers, path contractors, recreational bodies and funding agencies reinforced the need for such an organisation. The conference was also an opportunity to re-launch and re-name the Trust. With significant interest from Ireland the Trust has now been re-named The Upland Path Trust.
The MCofS is now pushing for 'The Upland Path Trust' to develop a budgeted business plan so that all those involved in path management throughout the UK and Ireland can share good practice and learn from an active and stimulating forum.
The full Monitoring Survey Report is available on CD, with a paper summary; Price £6 (inc. p&p) from BUFT C/O BMC 177-179 Burton Road, Manchester M20 2BB.
Cairngorms Issues
Cairngorms Bothies
One of the reasons why the MCofS campaigned for the introduction of national parks in Scotland was because we believed they would be able to address issues that had previously remained beyond anyone else's responsibility and therefore left unresolved. A good example is the remote bothies in the Cairngorms National Park, with Corrour bothy being the main example.
The Cairngorms National Park convener, Andrew Thin, has asked us for our opinion on the future management of these bothies, and we would like to seek our members' views on this issue. Even if the eventual decision is to leave the bothies exactly as they are, the presence of the National Park is at least enabling the debate to take place. Options could include doing nothing, flattening Corrour and maybe some of the other bothies, or developing some of them into serviced alpine style huts.
In our recent on-line poll to assess views concerning sanitation in the hills Corrour bothy was regarded the second worst place in Scotland. For such a remote and beautiful place there are some knotty problems to face up to. What do you think? Please send us your views.
Braemar Roadside Camping
Another example of the Cairngorms National Park addressing issues that have previously remained off everyone's agenda is the thorny one of roadside camping on the grass to the south of Braemar in Glen Clunie. A hot weekend in July saw 74 tents pitched in that area and local residents are understandably concerned about their water supply, the intake for which is just downstream. With no facilities around the tents there is scope for a considerable pollution problem.
The MCofS were at a recent meeting in Braemar where we stressed the difference between 'Wild Camping' as practiced by small groups of people in small tents in discreet remote places, and 'Congregational Roadside Camping', which in places like Glen Clunie can cause significant problems.
The camping in Glen Clunie is also affecting the landscape quality of the glen, and is of concern to the Police because it may well be harbouring a criminal element as well. The National Park officers involved in the issue are realistic about the difficulties in solving the current problem and are working with the local community, the Police and ourselves.
We feel that what used to be an enjoyable place for small numbers of mountaineers to camp has, at least in summer, become a noisy and polluted place that the majority of mountaineers would not want to be associated with. We are taking the view that the local community has genuine concerns, and that with the National Park's lead, we should be part of a collaborative approach to resolving the many issues surrounding the use of this picturesque glen for congregational roadside camping.
Please let us have your thoughts on this issue.
Access Signs and Barriers
Some come down …..
The impact of the Land Reform Act is beginning to show visible signs of improving access on the ground. Perhaps the thorniest access issue in the Scottish Highlands, the fortified gate on the bridge over the River Etive at Alltchaorunn (NN198513) has been unlocked as a result of pressure exerted by Highland Council. The local authority Access Officer had initiated the process of serving a so-called Section 14(2) order on the estate. This is where the authority can say “take down this sign or barrier in the next 3 weeks, or we'll take it down for you and send you the bill”. On this occasion it was the threat of a 14(2) order, rather than the actual order, that caused the estate to react and remove their padlock and barbed wire from the gate.
News from Dumfries and Galloway Council confirms that the aggressive sign at the Green Well of Scotland (NX556945) has been removed, although it is not known whether this is a result of the new access laws. The sign in question was aimed at walkers setting out to climb the Corbett Cairnsmore of Carsphairn.
….. But others go up
As usual with access stories, it is a case of two steps forward and one step backwards. During the stalking season it was reported to us that the Glenquoich estate had a sign requesting “No hillwalkers please” between 24th August and 10th October. The Highland Council Access Officer for that area is aware of this sign, which clearly breaches the Land Reform Act and Scottish Outdoor Access Code, and the MCofS is working with Highland Council staff to ensure that this sign, and others like it, are not used next year.
An incident of great concern has been reported to us in which a walker was ordered off the Glen Dessary estate because walkers were not welcome for the two months of the stag stalking season. This appears unbelievable in 2005, but nevertheless true, so we are pursuing the case with Highland Council.
An array of signs have again appeared around the Invervar gate at the start of the Glen Lyon circuit of 4 Munros. In our view these signs do not comply with the spirit of the Scottish Outdoor Code so we are taking this up with Perth and Kinross Council.
If you see a sign that you feel goes against the spirit of the new legislation then we would like to hear from you. Please use the Access Problem Reporting Form on our website.
Wild Camping Code
The MCofS has updated its Wild Camping Code that was first produced in 1996. Our original guidance was rendered out of date as a result of the passing of the Land Reform Act, so we decided to re-visit the Code, re-write the Camping and the Law section, and generally update the rest of the text where our thinking has moved on in the intervening years. The updated version of this Code can be found on our website.
Glensanda Super Quarry
The MCofS has objected to proposals to expand the Glensanda Super Quarry on the Morvern coast. Please visit our website to see a copy of our objection.
Beauly to Denny Transmission Line Proposals
The consultation exercise for the proposed Beauly to Denny transmission line will be closing on December 12th. The MCofS website contains details of the consultation and if you still have time to submit your objection we would urge you to check our website and make your views known.
Quinag in John Muir Trust Ownership
It has been announced that the John Muir Trust is in the process of purchasing the impressive Sutherland mountain Quinag.
The owners of the iconic mountain, the Filmer-Sankey family, wished to secure the guardianship of the mountain for the future and decided they would like it to pass to the John Muir Trust (JMT). The Trust has received an anonymous donation of £500,000 towards the purchase price of £600,000.
More information on the John Muir Trust can be seen at: www.jmt.org
Snapshots
Attended site visit at Auchinstarry Quarry with staff from Jacobs Babtie and North Lanarkshire Council. More news in March issue.
Ran a training course in Stirling for recreational representatives on Local Access Forums in conjunction with other recreational bodies.
River Deep Mountain High
By Mike Dales
After a smidgen over ten years in the MCofS Access and Conservation Officer's post it is time for me to move onto a new job and new challenge. By the time this edition of The Scottish Mountaineer comes out I will have moved across to the Scottish Canoe Association (SCA) where I will be the Access and Environment Officer.
The ten years from 1995 to 2005 have certainly been eventful and as decades go there have certainly been some significant changes. On my first day in post I was asked to think of what we might want in potential Scottish access legislation should Labour win the next General Election and deliver on their pledge to change access laws. I remember laughing at the concept of access being on the political agenda, let alone having statutory rights of access. Yet, here we are ten years later with a devolved Parliament, a Land Reform Act containing those statutory rights of access and a couple of National Parks in Scotland.
Day to day and month to month, progress on many of our issues appears to be painfully slow but we have seen the setting up of two National Parks in Scotland, and the MCofS has seen off attempts to fly helicopter tourism flights over the Skye Cuillin and saved the Shieldaig Forest area of the Torridon Mountains from the destruction that a proposed hydro scheme would have wrought.
From attempting to be reactive and solve access problems on a site by site basis, and often failing to have an impact, we moved into a proactive period in which we were able to influence the development of a new access system, and we have now returned to the reactive role, only this time round we have significant legislative and local authority back-up.
The battle to gain statutory access rights has actually taken about 150 years, but having secured those rights we now need to defend them. The fight for access will always go on, but that is nothing compared to the fight we now have on our hands to defend our glorious landscapes. The threat to Scotland's beauty from the onslaught of onshore wind factories and transmission lines is extremely worrying, and if this battle is lost then the places we enjoy access to could be rendered not worth visiting. The irony is that the technology being used by the wind energy industry is flawed and the potential destruction of our scenery is unlikely to make the slightest bit of difference to our nation's carbon emissions. I am strongly pro-renewables, but the dash for wind is the biggest confidence trick ever foisted upon us, and the money-grabbing business people that have hijacked the renewables industry should hang their heads in shame for the way they are treating our scenic heritage.
As I wind up my time at the MCofS and write my last magazine articles I would like to thank all those that I have worked with over the last 10 years and especially thank those members and committee members that have contributed to the access and conservation issues that I have been involved in. Club talks, symposiums and AGMs have provided opportunities to meet with members and discuss the issues of the day. The information technology revolution that has also taken place over this decade has enabled more people to gain quick access to our website and this in turn has led to us being able to exert more influence on decision-makers by activating our members more quickly. Also, even to those who I have only managed to have a short piece of e-mail correspondence with, thank you for your contribution to our work and for showing an interest in the issues we deal with. I will continue to be a mountaineer in my own time and will keep up with the issues that are close to my heart and send in my own personal comments on the vital issues. Oh, and if you're an SCA member as well, I'll be writing for you again soon.
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