Loss of 60 rangers from Scots beauty spots a ‘step backwards’
The loss of 60 rangers hired to patrol tourist hotspots around Scotland – from the North Coast 500 to Skye and Loch Lomond – has been described as a “step backwards”.
As as communities in some of the country’s most scenic locations face the onset of the new holiday period, it has been revealed that around 60 posts funded from £900,000 of Scottish Government money through Naturescot last year will not continue this season.
The Government agency has confirmed “difficult decisions” surrounding budgets had been taken.
The ranger service was launched in 2021 to deal with issues surrounding high levels of motorhomes, wild camping, dangerous campfires and outdoor toileting as the Covid pandemic drove high numbers of people into the countryside.
Margaret Meek, one of the founders of th enc 500 the land Weeps page on facebook, which shares information surrounding activity on the 516- mile driving route through the north and west highlands, said :“the ranger service absolutely worked. It is inconceivable that it is being scrapped. We did a poll in 2022 and the support for the rangers was absolutely overwh elm ing.i think they have made a huge difference .”
Rangers were hired to inform visitors about responsible access and the rules of the Scottish Outdoor Access Code on issues such as motor home parkingand the lighting of camp fires.
The loss of the service comes as rangers in the Highland Council ranger area, including Loch aber,sk ye and sutherland, including the NC500, revealed the scale of its work in 2023.
Its 18 rangers visited almost 22,000 sites, recorded 31,147 motorhomes across the region and collected 2,189 bags of litter. More than 5,500 off-site tents were discovered, with a total of 8,657 incidents of “outdoor toileting” noted.
An increase in campfires, which are discouraged by the Scottish Outdoor Access Code, was noted, with 3,640 recorded.
In a six-month period, more than 101,634 vehicles were seen parked outside of regulated sites in carparks and on roadsides.
Rangers “positively engaged” with 29,435 people – with 439 negative interactions recorded.
Other areas covered by the access rangers included the east Lothian coast line, loch tay and Loch Tummel, the Isle of Lewis, Corrie Fee in Angus and Glencoe.
A Naturescot spokesperson said: “The Better Places Fund was a temporary fund originally established to help manage the increase in domestic visitorsexperienced during and following the Covid-19 pandemic and aimed at helping manage visitor pressures in some of the busiest parts of rural Scotland. The current pressure on budgetsmeans that difficult decisions have had to be made and there are currently no plans to extend this fund. We fully understand that this may have an impact on the ability of some organisations to undertake visitor management activity. We will continue to work with partners to address any issues, share good practice and encourage responsible enjoyment of the outdoors and nature by visitors.”
A Highland Council spokesperson said there was no external funding to continue the service.
The current pressure on budgets means that difficult decisions have had to be made Naturescot