• Home
  • Campaigns
    • Debates
    • Resources
  • Consultations
    • Governments
    • Organisations
  • Documents
    • Leaflets
    • Press Releases
    • Meeting Notices
    • Press Coverage
  • Species
    • Animals
    • Fungi
    • Plants
    • Insects
    • Lichens
    • Birds
  • Habitats
    • Bogs
    • Mountain
    • Woodland
  • Info
    • Meetings
    • Event Calendar
    • Press Releases
    • Contact
    • Links
    • Site Map
  • Join
  • Image 1
    The Badenoch and Strathspey Conservation Group
  • Image 1
    The Badenoch and Strathspey Conservation Group
  • Image 1
    The Badenoch and Strathspey Conservation Group

Share

Follow Us

Search

Join

Select membership type:

Popular Articles

  • Contact
  • Bad news: CNPA paper rejects much Reporters advice.
  • Butterflies and magical moths of the Mossie Illustrated Talk
  • Danny Alexander Quote "Climate change is the biggest long-term challenge that we face"
  • Andrena lapponica nesting site in Boat of Garten wood development site

Latest News

  • Cairngorms’ Planners recommend destruction of ancient woodland at Nethy Bridge
  • School Wood letter in The Scotsman on 13 March 2020
  • Plans to clear woodland for 7 homes in Nethy Bridge rejected
  • Illustrated Talk ‘New Findings on Golden Eagles’
  • Public Talk: 'Capercaillie in the Cairngorms'

About Us

The objectives of the Badenoch and Strathspey Conservation Group are to stimulate public interest in, and care for, the beauty, history and character of Badenoch & Strathspey; to encourage active conservation of the area through wise use; to encourage high standards of planning and architecture in harmony with the environment.

Registered as a Scottish Charity SC003846.

Cairngorms NP IUCN Category

IUCN Protected Area Management Categories classify protected areas according to their management objectives. The Cairngorms National Park was designated in 2003 the IUCN Protected Areas Category: 5 - Protected landscape (sustainable development area).

How long can anachronistic & damaging land uses prevail?

Details
Written by Roy Turnbull
Category: Debates
Published: 13 April 2016

Dear Sir,

On Monday, April 4, The Scotsman published an article giving the sporting estates' defence of muirburn - the burning of heather during grouse moor management.

On Friday, you published the results of research from Edinburgh and Aberdeen Universities, indicating that adopting the latest "sustainable land use practices" would allow the locking away, or sequestration, of huge quantities of greenhouse gases in "farmland and natural wild spaces".

Thus we witness a nineteenth century indulgence confronted by twenty first century reality.

16 3 27 Seaf IMG 8164 1800

Recent muirburn next to woodland in the Cairngorms National Park, Spring 2016.

Grouse moors and deer stalking estates have this in common: they both minimise carbon sequestration.

Burning of grouse moors and over-grazing of stalking estates prevents woodland regeneration and devastates ground vegetation, whilst compacting soils and reducing their carbon retention capacities. These systems are the very opposite of "sustainable land use practices" if that sustainability has any reference to the aspirations of the recent Paris summit on climate change, to which our governments are committed.

The questions arise: How long, in a world divesting its money from fossil fuels and increasingly desperate about global warming, can these anachronistic and damaging land-uses prevail? When will the monetary value of sporting estates begin to plummet? How long will it take before the Scottish Government faces up to this reality and provides scientifically appropriate legislation to govern the demise and transition of Scotland's sporting estates?

Yours sincerely,
Roy Turnbull
Nethy Bridge, Inverness-shire


References:

http://www.scotsman.com/news/gamekeepers-campaign-to-explain-why-heather-is-set-on-fire-1-4089784

http://www.scotsman.com/news/education/scottish-research-finds-soil-crucial-to-climate-change-fight-1-4093629

 

Environmental Hustings Thur 21 April in Aviemore

Details
Written by Tessa Jones
Category: Meetings
Published: 31 March 2016

26576585575 7e44abc7cf k 26510760591 0dea127313 k 25971475274 f0119c5fdc k
Photos from 2016 hustings.

7pm - 9pm on Thursday 21 April.

Covering the two constituencies of: Inverness and Nairn; and Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch.

Free, all welcome.

Location: Aviemore Community Centre, Muirton, Aviemore, PH22 1SF.

2016 Hustings Poster 1200

The candidates who attended the hustings:

Conservative - Edward Mountain, Strathspey
Green - Isla O'Reilly, H&I list
Labour - David Stewart, Strathspey
LibDem - Carolyn Caddick - Strathspey
RISE - Jean Urquhart, H&I list
SNP - Maree Todd, H&I list
Solidarity - Liz Walker, H&I list
UKIP - Philip Anderson, H&I list

 

Talk: Improved Planning in the Spotlight

Details
Written by Gus Jones
Category: Meetings
Published: 24 March 2016

We are delighted that Clare Symonds will be giving BSCG a talk about improving planning in Scotland on Wednesday 30 March in Carrbridge village Hall at 7.30pm. Clare is the founder and chair of Planning Democracy and has been recognised in the Scottish Sustainable Development Forum’s Green List for her work to improve community engagement in Scottish planning. Clare has worked on community empowerment issues in both local government and the voluntary sector strengthening her belief that a robust, democratic planning system is crucial for shaping fairer and more sustainable places.

2016 March talk Clare Symonds poster

Planning Democracy is a national charity established in 2009 with the aim of strengthening democracy by promoting a stronger public voice in the Scottish land-use planning system. Planning Democracy was established in response to growing concerns from individuals and groups who found that Scotland's planning reforms, implemented in 2009, had made little difference to their ability to understand and influence the planning process. There is a perceived failure of democratic planning which has resulted in many people feeling dis-empowered, and unable to influence what happens in their own areas. The concern it holds is that this situation leads to development being strongly dictated by market forces and has huge implications for social and environmental injustices. Planning Democracy wants to ensure the public is fairly and equitably involved in the planning process believing this will lead to more locally accountable, robust planning decisions, driven by need rather than profit.

Planning Democracy is a campaigning and influencing charity. It is the only organisation in Scotland representing the community perspective and promoting cultural and structural changes to facilitate greater public participation in Scotland's planning system.

With growing calls for a fairer and more balanced planning system and with an election for the Scottish Parliament approaching, Clare’s talk that will encompass some of the range of the work of Planning Democracy promises to be particularly timely.

BSCG Steps in to Help Wintergreens

Details
Written by Gus Jones
Category: Plants
Published: 24 March 2016

Teamwork on the outskirts of the ‘Forest Village’ of Nethybridge has delivered a successful conservation outcome for attractive pinewood plants. Recognizing that two kinds of wintergreen were at risk along a verge earmarked for the laying of a broadband cable, BSCG volunteers marked the plants with high visibility tape enabling contractors A. Willox & Sons to take the cable along a route that skirted the wintergreens.

Complimenting the teamwork with A Willox & Son, Dr Deborah Long, Head of Plantlife Scotland said, ‘This is a really good example of all the benefits that can be achieved when local conservation groups work with contractors. The wintergreens are a group of beautiful flowers that are highly characteristic of our native pinewoods. It is heartening to see their conservation as a key part of road verge management, which is sensitive enough to avoid harm to these plants, securing a stronger future for them in the National Park.’

The team
The team at the roadside.

Marked Wintergreens
The temporary marker tape in position.

wintergreen in flower 1200 BSCG
Wintergreen flowers.

Talk: 'Cairngorms Nature - Current Challenges' by Andy Ford

Details
Written by Gus Jones
Category: Meetings
Published: 11 November 2015

2015 Nov tallk poster

Illustrated talk by Andy Ford who works for the Cairngorms National Park Authority as their Cairngorms Nature Manager.

Andy Ford’s illustrated talk will highlight some of the key species in need of conservation action in the Cairngorms, and review the progress that has been made with the Cairngorms Nature Action Plan as well as look at a range of future challenges and opportunities.

8.00pm Wednesday 25 November
Carrbridge Village Hall.

Page 5 of 28

  • Start
  • Prev
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8
  • 9
  • 10
  • Next
  • End

Share

Follow Us

BSCG Twitter

Tweets by @bscgscotland

The Cairngorms Need Your Help

BSCG 40 years logo 160x160

In 2015 The Badenoch & Strathspey Conservation Group celebrated 40 years of speaking up for nature in the Cairngorms. Our efforts have helped ensure that this world class landscape still provides a refuge for Scotland’s rarest and most iconic wildlife, like Scottish wildcat, capercaillie, red squirrel and freshwater pearl mussel. Unfortunately both the outstanding scenery and wildlife that make the Cairngorms so special are increasingly threatened and are costly to defend.  Please make a donation to our work today and help protect these treasured landscapes and their wildlife.

BSCG Flickr

See our An Camas Mòr photos on our Flickr.

BSCG © 2013. All Rights Reserved.

In order to provide you with the best online experience this website uses cookies. Delete cookies

In order to provide you with the best online experience this website uses cookies.

By using our website, you agree to our use of cookies. Learn more

I agree

Information cookies

Cookies are short reports that are sent and stored on the hard drive of the user's computer through your browser when it connects to a web. Cookies can be used to collect and store user data while connected to provide you the requested services and sometimes tend not to keep. Cookies can be themselves or others.

There are several types of cookies:

  • Technical cookies that facilitate user navigation and use of the various options or services offered by the web as identify the session, allow access to certain areas, facilitate orders, purchases, filling out forms, registration, security, facilitating functionalities (videos, social networks, etc..).
  • Customization cookies that allow users to access services according to their preferences (language, browser, configuration, etc..).
  • Analytical cookies which allow anonymous analysis of the behavior of web users and allow to measure user activity and develop navigation profiles in order to improve the websites.

So when you access our website, in compliance with Article 22 of Law 34/2002 of the Information Society Services, in the analytical cookies treatment, we have requested your consent to their use. All of this is to improve our services. We use Google Analytics to collect anonymous statistical information such as the number of visitors to our site. Cookies added by Google Analytics are governed by the privacy policies of Google Analytics. If you want you can disable cookies from Google Analytics.

However, please note that you can enable or disable cookies by following the instructions of your browser.