The Scottish countryside will receive extra protection from hilltracks through new planning controls, Local Government and Planning Minister Derek Mackay has announced. Through the introduction of a prior notification and approval process, planning authorities will be able to consider how proposed tracks will impact on the environment and intervene to ensure that design, siting and appearance are acceptable. Hilltracks for any other purpose will continue to require full planning consent. The requirements will be introduced across the country later in the year, and will be an extension of existing prior notifications under Class 18 agriculture and Class 22 forestry which…

The John Muir Trust has urged Highland Perthshire residents and visitors to object to a major wind farm on the Talladh-a-Bheithe estate between Loch Rannoch and Loch Ericht. As well as being located in the heart the Wild Land Area Rannoch-Nevis-Mamores-Alder, the 24-turbines each 125 metres high, would be visible from over 30 Munros and Corbetts, the iconic West Highland Railway line and the A82 – the main tourist route through the West Highlands. The Trust is set to submit its own detailed objection to both Perth and Kinross Council and the Scottish Government’s Energy Consents and Deployment Unit (ECDU).…