from The National, 28 May 2015
Mass civil disobedience and a legal challenge will be inevitable if Scottish ministers endorse a plan to crack down on camping in Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, veteran campaigners are warning.
Hundreds of people will be turned into criminals for pitching tents on the loch shores leading to a “summer of discontent”, they say, arguing that the proposed curbs will breach legal rights of access to the countryside.
The Loch Lomond park authority is planning four “camping management byelaw zones” covering long stretches of its loch shores. Aimed at combatting littering and anti-social behaviour by summertime campers from urban areas, the new byelaws will ban camping without a permit.
The park authority wrote to ministers earlier this month urging them to endorse the plans. The public has until 21 June to make comments, and then the Scottish Government will decide what to do.
Dennis Canavan, a vice president of Ramblers Scotland and former independent MSP, called on ministers to reject the park’s “draconian” plan. “The proposed by-laws are a recipe for widespread civil disobedience,” he told The National.
“They will be seen by many as an attempt to undermine the basic rights of access to wild land, enshrined in the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003.” The camping curbs were “the thin end of the wedge”, he warned.
“If the Scottish Government is misguided enough to approve the extension of such bylaws to parts of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, it will send out a signal to every local authority and every landowner in Scotland to follow suit so that wild camping could eventually be banned throughout the entire country.”
Canavan, a keen hill walker, argued that the bylaws weren’t needed. “A fairer and more effective solution to the problem of anti-social behaviour would be stricter enforcement of existing legislation,” he said.
Cameron McNeish, the well-known outdoor writer and broadcaster, accused the Loch Lomond park authority of a “blind determination” to push through plans which undermined access law. “It's a shocking state of affairs,” he said.
“I would predict a level of civil disobedience with people camping illegally if these byelaws go ahead. Many innocent people who just want to enjoy the fresh air and freedom of this part of Scotland will be victimised because of a guilty few whose misdemeanours can be dealt with by using existing legislation and police powers.”
He added: “It's cruelly ironic that Scotland's cherished and internationally acclaimed access legislation is in grave danger of being eroded, not by politicians or militant landowners, but by one of our own national park boards.”
Dave Morris, the former directors of Ramblers Scotland, described the proposed camping byelaws as a “complete disaster”. The planning camping permits will be an “unworkable, bureaucratic nightmare”, he alleged.
“If these proposals go ahead, by next Easter there will be chaos in Scotland's countryside as the park authority tries to turn hundreds of our citizens into criminals just because they are camping near a loch shore. A summer of discontent would then be inevitable unless the byelaws could be stopped through court action.”
Morris argued that according to the park’s figures up to 800 camping spaces were needed, far more than it was planning to provide. He wanted Scottish ministers to set up a Cabinet-level task force to sort out the “shambles” created by the park’s proposals.
The Loch Lomond park authority, however, pointed out that its proposed byelaws only covered a small proportion of the park. “Responsible wild campers have absolutely nothing to fear from these proportionate and practical proposals,” said chief executive Gordon Watson.
“This carefully considered suite of measures includes several additional camping locations to help halt the serious environmental damage caused by over-use every summer, and will also tackle irresponsible camping, littering, vandalism and anti-social behaviour in a small number of hotspots.”
He added: “Responsible campers are still very welcome to camp in 96 per cent of the Park’s 720 square mile area and the significant positive support for these measures from national and local bodies as well as communities in the national park reassures us that talk of mass civil disobedience is very wide of the mark."
According to the park authority, its public consultation on the camping curbs ended up split, with 49 per cent of 336 responses supportive, and 50 per cent objecting. But critics accuse the authority of underestimating the opposition.
The Scottish Government confirmed that it was open for comments until 21 June. “In line with required process, Scottish Ministers will, in due course, carefully consider the proposals for camping management byelaws,” said a spokeswoman.
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