Survey shows wind farms are damaging Scottish mountain tourism

Posted by Catherine Flitcroft on 19/03/2014

Walkers and climbers turn their backs on Scotland as electricity companies industrialise wild lands, according to a new survey by the Mountaineering Council of Scotland (MCofS).

Scotland’s representative body for mountaineering is calling on the Scottish Government to act now to protect wild lands as a survey reveals that wind farms in mountain areas are damaging a key area of tourism.

A survey of nearly 1,000 climbers and hill walkers, carried out by the MCofS, revealed that 68% say parts of Scotland are now less appealing because of wind farms. Around two thirds have already been put off by wind farms from visiting or revisiting places in Scotland they had visited before.

Over four-fifths of respondents said there must be protection for National Parks, National Scenic Areas and Core Areas of wild land. Two-thirds want buffer zones so developers cannot spoil these special areas by placing industrial-scale wind farms around their perimeters.

And 67% say wind farms are making Scotland as a whole a less appealing place to visit. The findings come as large electricity generation and other renewables companies lobby the Scottish Government to abandon proposals for stronger planning guidelines (part of the Third National Planning Framework (NPF3) process) which would offer some extra protection for wild lands.

David Gibson, MCofS Chief Officer, said: “The survey results are a stark warning to the Scottish Government – badly sited wind farms are a serious threat to Scotland’s reputation as a tourism destination. The more that are built in our mountains, the more visitors are put off.

“Many of the wind farms planned for Scotland’s most remote and beautiful areas have yet been built and the evidence from this, and other surveys, suggests that visitors dislike them more and more as they cease to be a novelty.

“Natural heritage tourism is worth £1.6 billion (see Notes for Editors) to the Scottish economy and tourism organisations have consistently emphasised the importance of nurturing these kinds of visitors. One of the main ways of doing this is to ensure that Scotland is seen as offering an “authentic” experience.

“We have written to Energy, Enterprise and Tourism minister Fergus Ewing, who holds the brief both for the approval of large scale renewable energy developments and for tourism, asking for a meeting to discuss the urgent need to protect Scotland’s rapidly diminishing wild, open mountain landscapes.

“It is deeply disturbing that the renewables lobby is using all its influence to push the Scottish Government into abandoning proposals that would give some protection to one of Scotland’s greatest natural assets.

“Ministers must take decisive action to defend Scotland’s natural heritage and the livelihoods of all those small businesses and jobs that depend on walkers and climbers to make a living.”

The BMC emphasised the need to protect Scotland’s reputation among hill walkers and climbers. BMC CEO Dave Turnbull said: “The survey results are no surprise to the BMC. The ‘away from it all’ feel of the Scottish mountains is one of their biggest attractions to walkers and climbers from south of the border. People will naturally vote with their feet and start avoiding areas with intrusive wind farm developments.”

English climber Andrew Northcott is among those who increasingly find that badly sited wind farms are damaging the qualities which make Scotland’s mountains so special. Andrew said: “I headed up Meall nam Fuaran from Glen Quaich. It was my first walk in the Highlands for almost a year and I really looked forward to it. There should have been a fabulous view towards snow-covered mountains – but what a shame! Someone had put a wind farm high up at 600 meters, changing the wild experience and obscuring the view. I counted 14 turbines in total. Why is Scotland’s environment being trashed in pursuit of power?"