Galloway and West Dumfries MSP Finlay Carson has called for a national strategy from the Scottish Government to deal with the scourge of dirty camping that has become the focus of anger in rural communities.
The local MSP spoke yesterday in Holyrood in a Members Debate on the problems of dirty camping and irresponsible behaviour in the countryside; Mr Carson -who is the Shadow Minister for Rural Affairs & the Natural Environment- strongly advocated for the restoration of Countryside Ranger services nationally; pointing to the example of Loch Ken in Kirkcudbrightshire where a there has been numerous acts of irresponsible behaviour. The Loch Ken Trust have come together with the Police and Community Safety officers, but recognise more needs to be done.
Speaking after the debate, he said: “Responsible access to land is set out under the Land Reform Act 2003, and whilst the overwhelming majority of the public willingly comply with necessity to leave the countryside as they originally found it after wild camping – a noticeable minority have left a trail of destructive behaviour; littering the most beautiful parts of the country, and leaving naturally untouched areas unsafe for visitors and any wild animals.
“I welcome the contribution of individuals and local organisations, in Galloway we have successfully managed to pull together funding for 2 Countryside Rangers on the Southern Upland way with the Local Authority and Scottish Power Renewables coming together with a funding package. But the scale of the problem and the blot it is leaving on the natural environment, local people and the reputation of Scotland’s countryside demands much better from the Scottish Government – it’s high time that a national strategy to tackle dirty camping and associated rural crime was implemented.
“A strategy to re-introduce Countryside Rangers would help inform and educate visitors not only improving the visitor experience but assisting in deterring poor and irresponsible behaviour.
“There is an issue of funding, and a lack of long-term investment in rural communities. Scotland’s Ranger Services were, supported by funding managed by SNH. However two fiscal measures were implemented which subsequently impacted on this support, particularly for Local Authorities.
Firstly, indirect funding of Local Authorities was stopped which meant SNH could not give grant aid to them. This was, however, mitigated by ring fenced funding for Ranger Services held within the Local Authority block grant. However, a few years ago this ring fenced protection was also removed and that policy has had a significant detrimental effect on Local Authority Ranger Services since.
To compound this, SNH, now ‘NatureScot’, made a unilateral decision to phase out grant aid support to Ranger Services out with the Local Authority sector – Affecting NGOs, private estates, charities and community led initiatives and directly lead to more Ranger job losses in this sector too.“I would urge Ministers to come back to Parliament with a considered and proactive plan that can provide reassurance to communities across Scotland that the damage and harm that they have seen on their doorsteps will not continue. “
“ I have written to invite the minster to meet with me and stakeholder to explore the way forward in a nationwide effort to bring Countryside Rangers back into our communities.”
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