Time to crack down on rogue rural visitors?
While the beauty of Scotland’s countryside has long been recognised, in recent times access to its hills, glens, fields and rivers have become a major attraction enjoyed by residents, travellers, holidaymakers and visitors alike.
And although the country has always had a universal access to land - with the “trespassers will be prosecuted” laws halting south of the Border, the outdoor access code drawn up as part of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 clarified the position, giving the right of responsible access to just about all areas.
The basis of this access right has, all along, been one of shared responsibilities, in that those exercising such rights have to act responsibly, while farmers, landowners and managers have a reciprocal responsibility to respect the interests of those who take responsible access.
The right to access extends beyond simple passage, with many leisure pursuits being granted similar rights to any non-motorised activities, including walking, cycling, horse-riding and wild camping.
It would probably be fair to say that the problems which were feared in what was often interpreted as giving a free-forall in the early days of the legislation did not materialise on the vast majority of Scotland’s farmland, although there have been exceptions where problems did and can still arise, often on urban fringes.
The access code brought a fair increase in the number of walkers and others taking to the countryside. Recently, however, the on-the-doorstep nature of Scotland’s farmland has seen a huge increase in the number of people taking their daily dose of exercise on, across and through farmland during the Covid lockdown.
While there have been tales of people travelling many miles to gain access, most of those walking, running or cycling in the countryside have been doing so near the outskirts of towns and cities.
Many of the thousands who have exercised in this way during the past 12 weeks have done so responsibly and have recognised the need for farmers and crofters to look after livestock and grow crops safely.
However, NFU Scotland last week reported that, once again, an irresponsible minority was spoiling it for the majority.
With a new wave of people likely to head to the countryside in the coming weeks as lockdown restrictions are further relaxed, a catalogue of incidents which highlights just how difficult things have been for some farmers, especially those on the urban firinges, was released last week.
The list of complaints includes:
People ignoring Government recommendations and travelling considerable distances to take access;
People walking through fields of cows with calves or ewes and lambs with dogs off the lead;
Failing to pick up dog poo and, in some instances, bagging dog poo then throwing it into fields;
People accessing farm buildings and farmyards;
Abandoning vehicles in gateways and farm roads to go for a walk or cycle;
Ignoring requests to use hand sanitiser when opening and closing farm gates;
Failure to take litter home;
Crossing fields of crops, such as wheat and barley, rather than walking round them;
Holding picnics and parties, often with dangerous barbeques;
Arson, vandalism and property and posters being destroyed; Gates not being closed. As an example of the last point, one farmer was left devastated after someone left a field gate open, which allowed a herd of cows to break into a silage field, resulting in 11 prize animals dying.
The vast majority in the farming industry is savvy enough to realise that the old “get off my land” approach is no longer valid and has recognised the importance of people being able to enjoy the countryside and to see where their food is being produced.
This has been recognised by the creation of a set of posters unveiled last week which helps welcome people, provide information on what’s going on in different fields while encouraging them to keep dogs on a lead and behave responsibly.
It’s a positive move but one which many feel might need to be backed up by tougher legislation to control the minority of access takers who don’t act responsibly.