The amount of Scottish land on which man's influence cannot be seen is shrinking

The amount of Scottish land on which man's influence cannot be seen is shrinking

Scotland’s wilderness areas are being irrevocably damaged by the construction of uncontrolled hill tracks, according to the nation’s mountaineering body.

MSP Peter Peacock has raised the matter in the Scottish Parliament after the Mountaineering Council of Scotland pointed out the damage being done by tracks scarring some of the most beautiful upland areas. At present, the tracks do not need to be considered as part of the planning process.

The Labour MSP for the Highlands and Islands tabled two written questions which are due to be answered in the New Year, asking what evidence local authorities require to make sure such tracks are for agricultural use, and when a review of development rights will be completed.

Government figures reveal that, between 2002 and 2005, the area of Scotland free of views of man-made developments fell from 42 per cent to 32 per cent, a serious erosion of the wilderness land which attracts visitors to the country.

Chris Townsend: Wild land being lost

Chris Townsend: 'Wild land being lost'

Chris Townsend, president of the MCofS, said: “Many of these tracks in upland areas are horrendous. The MCofS is very concerned about the ever increasing irreversible loss of wildness due to hill tracks being bulldozed throughout Scotland. These areas of wild land are being lost to Scotland.”

The council said a timetable for legislation to tackle the problem has already slipped, with a two-year delay since a report commissioned at the behest of the Scottish Executive by Heriot-Watt University that recommended an overhaul of the rights of landowners to construct the tracks in wilderness areas.

Hebe Carus, MCofS access and conservation officer, said, “I regularly receive photographs of outstandingly badly constructed tracks through previously wild areas, even in supposedly protected areas. The sad thing is that these are irreversible and completely uncontrolled through the planning system. The longer the review is delayed the more of wild Scotland will be lost forever.”

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