‘Risk to life’ if no action taken at site near to A90
A Highland Perthshire councillor has called for further support after the National Trust for Scotland (NTS) announced cuts to half of its countryside jobs despite recent Scottish Government funding.
The move will result in the loss of “decades’ worth” of specialist knowledge and skills, with the visitor centre at Killiecrankie and the Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve set to be affected.
NTS rangers and ecologists have been at the forefront of vital nature conservation work.
The one remaining ranger post covering the NTS’s North Perthshire sites, including Killiekrankie SSSI, is being turned into a visitor services role.
It is feared this will lead to a reduction in nature conservation work and environmental education engagement at these properties.
The change in job title also means that future post holders may not be required to have a specialist knowledge of the area to the extent of a countryside ranger.
Highland Ward councillor, John Duff, said: “The UK Government recently announced a £1.57 billion package of support for cultural, arts and heritage institutions across the UK.
“This included a £97million package for these institutions in Scotland of which the Scottish
Council officials have judged that an alleged unauthorised development east of Perth said to have an “inadequate”access to the A90 could be“a risk to life”.
Enforcement officers have now told Tait Docherty of Barclay House he must rip up hardstanding he is alleged to have formed on land north east of Drumsgate at Glendoick without planning permission or risk being prosecuted.
Perth and Kinross Council has served a notice on Mr Docherty requiring him to remove the hardstanding by November 15 or he could be taken to court and made to pay an unlimited fine.
The notice further requires Mr Docherty to flatten soil bunding he is also said to have formed without permission on the north, east and west boundaries of the site by December 5 and then sow the entire area with grass by December 20.
The document says enforcement officers first became aware of the alleged unauthorised bunding in November 2018 but no-one responded to a planning contravention notice they served on the owner of the land two months later.
The notice, which was published on PKC’s website last week, says officers then became aware of“further engineering operations”being undertaken on the site involving“the importation and deposition of materials on site to form a hardstanding”.
The document continues:“A site visit on January 23, 2020 confirmed that the site has been cleared of vegetation and large quantities of mixed crushed demolition waste had been imported and deposited on the site to form a hardstanding.
“Concerns have been raised regarding the intensified use of the existing access and egress to and from the site onto the A90(T) during the unauthorised works and to service the potential use of the site. The access fails to meet the standard for use by large vehicles.”
The notice goes on:“The formation of the hardstanding could facilitate a number of other uses that would be a material change of use from the lawful use [agriculture], the principle or acceptability of which has not been assessed and that such a use(s) pose a risk to life due to road safety arising from an intensified use of the existing, inadequate access from the A90(T).
“Accordingly, the council considers that formal enforcement action requiring the removal of the imported waste and respreading of the soil bunding and the reseeding of soil on the site is both justified and necessary.”
Mr Docherty has until September 15 to appeal against the enforcement notice.