21 charged after park beauty spots ruined
Glass left and fire damaged tree will need to be felled
Twenty-one people have been charged with irresponsible camping and environmental damage after parts of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park were left in a mess.
Areas were covered in rubbish over the first weekend after travel restrictions were lifted.
Despite the wet weather, campers left significant amounts of litter, including camping equipment, chairs and sleeping bags, broken glass and full bin bags of rubbish, and caused irreparable fire damage to trees and the ground in a number of locations around the National Park.
At one site 19 bags of litter was collected and 10 at another while elsewhere a tree was so badly damaged by fire it may need to be felled.
The incidents occurred despite national guidance asking people not to camp until July 15.
The 21 people were charged under the Camping Management Byelaws 2017 which cover certain areas of the National Park creating Camping Management Zones between March and September each year.
Within these zones, people can only camp in a campsite or a pre-booked camping permit area. All National Park authority campsites and camping permit areas remain closed due to Covid-19 in line with Scottish Government guidance.
The byelaws are enforced by both National Park Rangers and Police Scotland and can result in a fine of up to £500.
Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park chief executive Gordon Watson said: “It’s devastating to see the images of the litter and damage caused by people camping over the weekend. Not only is this irresponsible behaviour and environmental damage a blatant breach of the byelaws, it is also happening at a time when the national guidance is that people shouldn’t be going camping at all.
“While I can understand people’s desire to get out and enjoy the outdoors after such a long time being in lockdown I cannot understand why anyone would think it’s OK to destroy the place they’ve visited in this way. We cannot replace nature easily, or at the speed we are seeing it destroyed.
“It’s infuriating for those living in the local communities in the National Park to see this kind of behaviour on their doorstep and it’s incredibly frustrating for the National Park authority, and in particularly our Rangers who come across these scenes, to have to divert valuable time and resources to cleaning up the mess left behind by others, especially right now when we want to be focusing all of our efforts on ensuring people can return to enjoy the National Park safely.
“The message is clear, people should not be camping right now and we are working extremely closely with our partners in Police Scotland to take action against this type of damaging behaviour when we need to.”
Chief Inspector Gill Marshall added: “These offences related to the setting up of unofficial camps, setting fires, and causing damage to the environment, including fire damage to trees which occurred across South Loch Earn, Loch Venachar and the Loch Ard area. There were also unacceptable levels of littering.
“We want everyone to enjoy the experience of the National Park and this has been the case for the majority. Unfortunately, a small number of visitors have failed to respect the local environment and community.
“We will continue to work tirelessly with our colleagues in the National Parks to address these issues through joint patrols and would urge members of the public to report any instances of antisocial behaviour or other offences they see while visiting the park.”
The provisional date for reopening of National Park campsites and permit areas is July 17, subject to the Scottish Government confirming their proposed date for all tourism accommodation reopening from July 15.