Comments on: Alladale Estate plans face criticism

By: Walk Highlands

Walk Highlands — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 21:15:23 +0000

Tommy, yes the landscape needs restoring and could be ecologically improved and regenerated. For a start, the forest cover needs to be improved – then we can start on reintroductions, done scientifically and by public bodies – such as the beaver reintroductions in Argyll.

On the other hand, bulldozing tracks, building three metre high fences and charging for access would have nothing at all to do with improving the environment in my opinion. I will support projects which aim to improve the environment of the Highlands. The estate has said that the area proposed would be too small to support wolves naturally; the Alladale plans seem to me to be plans for a large and exclusive safari park.

As this is an old news story and is scrolled down the news, it is now closed to comments. Anyone wishing to continue the discussion can do so on here on Walktalk.

By: Tommy Moore

Tommy Moore — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 21:03:38 +0000

When did Scotlan’d environment ‘rebalance itself’. It is a bleached out dead wastland, not a wilderness in any meaningful sense. We wrecked it, and we are morally obliged to restore it. We should be happy to set aside an area for nature and happy to restrict access in a special case like this. Good luck to these outsiders. They deserve support.

By: Carol Oliver

Carol Oliver — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:48:46 +0000

Another thing is Marie, that you can’t re-introduce a species once it’s gone without causing serious ecological problems – not after such a long time anyway. Each time a species is lost from an area, nature rebalances itself. If you REintroduce it many, many years later, you will cause instant chaos again until the many, many years later when nature can eventually rebalance itself again. We’ve caused enough problems to nature – we shouldn’t be looking to unbalance it further by silly ‘re-introductions’. Time we stopped our interference with nature.

By: Paul Webster

Paul Webster — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 20:35:47 +0000

The thing is Marie that regeneration can take place – and is doing on many Highland estates – with no access restrictions. Many – on the other side of the argument to you – fear that the restrictions have got everything to do with creating an exclusive resort and making money, rather than ‘repairing damage’. In fact many see the construction of a 9 foot high electric fence, bulldozed vehicle tracks etc. as themselves being serious damage.

And the 1% is obviously just the area Lister owns. If the scheme went ahead, there would be nothing to stop other estates from doing exactly the same thing – so 1% is a bit of a red herring. The same rules have to apply everywhere – otherwise we could all build a house wherever we wanted as it would only cover 0.000001% of Britain each time.

Other posters please note – we will not add comments if you give an invalid email address. In answer to your question I am the author of the above article. If you would to contact us directly please use the ‘about us’ page and contact form. The debate continues on Walk Talk.

By: Marie Scott

Marie Scott — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 11:08:33 +0000

In the light of recent reports that many animals, especially primates, face extinction, largely through loss of habitat and pollution, isn’t it time the human race stopped being so selfish. If a few walkers can’t access 1per cent of the Highlands, is that too high a price to pay as some compensation for the land we have gobbled up or polluted. And those few walkers obviously do not represent 1 per cent of the population! Every success to Paul Lister and his team.

By: Walk Highlands

Walk Highlands — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 07:34:31 +0000

Ha! Yes, next we could hear a burglar's defence be that he has only stolen money from less than 1% of the population. There's more reaction from those at the talk on: Chris Townsend's blog Stravaiger's e-bothy blog

By: Ian McNeill

Ian McNeill — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 20:32:00 +0000

Hugh’s suggestion that access restrictions should be allowed because it is “only 1%” of the Highlands is ridiculous. Does he think that if one owns 1% of an area one is exempted from its laws and can ignore its traditions?

I used to live in the Peak District, close to the scene of the mass trespass which broke the ability of the estates in the Pennines to prevent access to hill country. If there were a plan to fence off 30,000 acres of the Pennines, the protests would be massive. Perhaps fewer people currently use the right to roam in Alladale than in the Pennines, but with increasing outdoor recreation and better roads it will increase. We must save it.

By: tony charlton

tony charlton — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 20:53:30 +0000

this man is a joke what he is trying to do is a highland jurassic park leave the highlands to the highlanders and go back to making furniture