Opinion Pumped Storage Hydro in the Highlands - Is Anywhere Still Off Limits?
Are the enormous Earba and Fearna hydro projects merely the thin end of an ever bigger wedge? In a planning free-for-all for energy in Scotland, where will we draw the line? It's not yet too late to shed light on the murky world of Highland meg...
Comments
The single biggest theft act in British history were the Enclosures Acts, first in Elizabethan times and the in the 18th century. I can distinctly recall starting my grammar school history O Level (Social & Economic) with this topic. The word was unfamiliar and little did I realise at the time what this represented. It was masked at the time as a better method of farming, rather than the Strip farming of Feudal times. But this single act, precipitated by the landowners in Parliament was legalised theft. Overnight the English common vanished. Sheep had to be enclosed although they had managed to prosper quite well before that. Even the tops of mountains were traversed by walls and barbed wire.
The nations largest landowners today mostly acquired their land and subsequently even more wealth in this legalised robbery.
However this debate is not all one-sided. Last year I revisited Dovedale, a frequent climbing venue when I lived around Manchester. I was appalled at the vast quantities of litter left by the present generation that has apparently little respect for our countryside. Pizza boxes were pile six deep. Visitors had picnic Ed and left black bin-liners of rubbish in piles, that is the few that could be a least a little bothered. The river was a cesspool. It was totally depressing. And let us remember this is a premier "beauty spot". I've seen less litter in the back streets and 'cricks' of Handsworth (B'ham). On the plus side I must admit that the summits of both Yr Wyffda and Scafell Pike were remarkably litter free, excepting for the odd banana skin festering in some crevice. So if we want to reclaim the countryside we have to get our own house in order first.
Thanks for writing a very well considered and researched article. We have a 'mountain 'to climb' as far a access is concerned, and if improving land by covering it in cattle-shit is a symptom of the fight ahead, it not be easy.
A good, detailed article.
Perhaps the BMC should join forces with the Ramblers and others to fund some Parliamentary lobbying.
Excellent article, that raises many interesting points.
Regarding the financial benefits of good access - we rented a house on a farm in Devon for a week last year, and specifically rejected several areas where there was poor access to the countryside.
Stuff like this:
https://www.thebmc.co.uk/outdoors-for-all-prime-minister
And these:
https://www.thebmc.co.uk/outdoors-for-all-a-manifesto-for-the-outdoor-sector
https://www.thebmc.co.uk/nature-2030-campaign-launched--people-and-nature
https://www.thebmc.co.uk/the-future-of-access-rights
It sounded like the BMC was making some great headway last year, particularly with Labour, unfortunately the whole "green backlash" and climate scepticism within the Tory party took hold again after the Uxbridge by-election and Labour got frightened off pushing on anything which looked too environmentally focused.
Thanks Eben.
One big issue you overlook is how busy traffic on roads has reduced our effective access in modern times. Too often these have become almost 'no go areas' for much slow traffic (be that pedestrian, horse, bike or wheelchair). I believe we could make massive improvements if we had multi-use pavements or parallel link paths where footpaths or bridleways end at such roads, to link to the next path away from the busy road. Small changes could make a massive difference to the utility of some of our path network.