National scenic areas
There are 40 national scenic areas (NSAs) in Scotland, covering 13% of the land area of Scotland. The 40 NSAs were originally identified in 1978 by the Countryside Commission for Scotland in 1978 as areas of ''"national scenic significance... of unsurpassed attractiveness which must be conserved as part of our national heritage"''.
Protected species
![Red_deer_stag_2009_denmark](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Red_deer_stag_2009_denmark.jpg)
Vulnerable plant and animal species in Scotland are protected under various legislation. In many cases it is an offence to kill or capture members of a protected animal species, or to uproot plants. NatureScot's primary role in regard to protected species is to license activities that would otherwise be an offence.
Enjoying the outdoors
NatureScot is responsible for promoting public access and enjoyment of the outdoors. It created and updates the
Scottish Outdoor Access Code, which provides detailed guidance on the exercise of the ancient tradition of
universal access to land in Scotland, which was formally codified by the
Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003
The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 is an Act of the Scottish Parliament which establishes statutory public rights of access to land and makes provisions under which bodies representing rural and crofting communities may buy land.
Provisions
T ...
. It also hosts the National Access Forum, which brings together all bodies with an interest in land access issues.
NatureScot also support the management of the three
regional parks. It acts as the "custodian" of
Scotland's Great Trails
Scotland's Great Trails are long-distance "people-powered" trails in Scotland, analogous to the National Trails of England and Wales or the Grande Randonnée paths of France. The designated routes are primarily intended for walkers, but may have se ...
, maintaining the official list and providing some finance and publicity to the trails, although responsibility for creating and maintaining each route lies with the
local authorities
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...
through which a route passes.
Governance
NatureScot is governed by its
board. As of August 2022, the board is made up of twelve members and is chaired by Mike Cantlay. Board members are appointed by Scottish Government ministers for an initial term of 4 years and normally serve a maximum of two terms. The primary roles of the board are to determine the objectives, strategies and policies of NatureScot in respect to its statutory obligations and guidance from the Scottish Government. Meetings of the NatureScot Board are open to the public to attend as observers.
Day-to-day operations are led by the Senior Leadership Team, consisting of a chief executive, who is appointed by the board, and a number of directors and deputy directors. the Senior Leadership Team comprised:
*Chief Executive and Accountable Officer: Francesca Osowska
*Director of Business Services and Transformation: Jane Macdonald
*Director of Green Economy: Robbie Kernahan
*Director of Nature and Climate Change: Nick Halfhide
*Deputy Director of Green Economy: Claudia Rowse
*Deputy Director of Nature and Climate Change: Eileen Stuart
*Head of External Affairs: Jason Ormiston
*Deputy Director of Business Services and Transformation: Stuart MacQuarrie
Supporting the Board are three committee, the Scientific Advisory Committee, the Protected Areas Committee, and the Audit and Risk Committee.
NatureScot programmes and priorities have a strong focus on helping to deliver the Scottish Government's National Outcomes and Targets which comprise the National Performance Framework. NatureScot is also a member of
SEARS (Scotland's Environmental and Rural Services) Scotland’s Environment and Rural Services (SEARS) is a partnership between eight public bodies aiming to improve experience among Scotland's land managers by working together to provide an efficient and effective service.
The SEARS partners are: ...
.
History
The agency was formed as Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) in 1992 from the amalgamation of the
Nature Conservancy Council for Scotland and the
Countryside Commission for Scotland
The Countryside Commission for Scotland was a statutory body in Scotland that was established by the Countryside (Scotland) Act 1967. Its role was to provide, develop and improve facilities for the enjoyment of the Scottish countryside, and to cons ...
to ''“secure the conservation and enhancement of, and to foster understanding and facilitate the enjoyment of the natural heritage of Scotland”''.
In March 2003, Scottish Ministers announced their decision to transfer SNH's headquarters from Edinburgh to
Inverness
Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...
, with around 270 jobs to be transferred. Prior to the move, relocation costs were variously estimated at between £22 million and £40 million. The decision to transfer SNH's headquarters was heavily criticized by
MSPs
Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP; gd, Ball Pàrlamaid na h-Alba, BPA; sco, Memmer o the Scots Pairliament, MSP) is the title given to any one of the 129 individuals elected to serve in the Scottish Parliament.
Electoral system
The ad ...
, unions, Edinburgh civic leaders and staff.
Criticism focused on the cost of the move, the disruption to staff and the risk of compromising the effectiveness of SNH's work. Up to 75% of headquarters staff were reported to be against the move.
Relocation took place between 2003 and 2006, many staff left at this point as they did not wish to, or were unable to transfer location.
In 2006, SNH headquarters staff moved into Great Glen House, a £15 million purpose-built headquarters building in Inverness. Great Glen House was built by Robertson Property, working with Keppie Design. As part of the tendering process, SNH set seven environmental and sustainability criteria for the design including achieving an 'Excellent' rating under the
BREEAM
BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method), first published by the Building Research Establishment (BRE) in 1990, is the world's longest established method of assessing, rating, and certifying the sustainability of ...
system. The final design met all criteria and achieved the highest ever BREEAM rating for a public building in the UK.
On 1 August 2010, the functions of the
Deer Commission for Scotland
The Deer Commission for Scotland was an executive non-departmental body of the Scottish Government. It was responsible for the conservation, control and sustainable management of all species of wild deer in Scotland. It also acted as the Governm ...
were transferred to SNH by section 1 of the
Public Services (Reform) (Scotland) Act 2010 and the Commission was dissolved.
In 2020 SNH was re-branded as NatureScot.
Projects
In support of its statutory duties, NatureScot undertakes many individual projects across Scotland, often in collaboration with land managers, charities and local communities.
Stoat eradication project
The introduction of alien
stoats
The stoat (''Mustela erminea''), also known as the Eurasian ermine, Beringian ermine and ermine, is a mustelid native to Eurasia and the northern portions of North America. Because of its wide circumpolar distribution, it is listed as Least Conc ...
since 2010 has created serious problems for native species in
Orkney
Orkney (; sco, Orkney; on, Orkneyjar; nrn, Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) north ...
:
In 2018, a stoat eradication project was presented by NatureScot to be applied "across
Orkney Mainland
The Mainland, also known as Hrossey and Pomona, is the main island of Orkney, Scotland. Both of Orkney's burghs, Kirkwall and Stromness, lie on the island, which is also the heart of Orkney's ferry and air connections.
Seventy-five per cent of O ...
,
South Ronaldsay,
Burray
Burray () is one of the Orkney Islands in Scotland. It lies to the east of Scapa Flow and is one of a chain of islands linked by the Churchill Barriers.
Geography and geology
Burray lies between Mainland, Orkney and South Ronaldsay, and is ...
,
Glimps Holm
Glimps Holm or Glims Holm ( non, Glums Holm) is a small uninhabited islet in Orkney, Scotland.
Geography
Glimps Holm lies in Holm Sound, one of the eastern entrances to Scapa Flow, between Mainland, Orkney and the island of Burray. The Churc ...
,
Lamb Holm
Lamb Holm is a small uninhabited island in Orkney, Scotland. The Italian Chapel, constructed during the Second World War, is the island's main attraction.
Lamb Holm is classified by the National Records of Scotland as an uninhabited island tha ...
and
Hunda
Hunda is an uninhabited island in the Orkney archipelago in Scotland. It is in extent and rises to above sea level. It is situated in Scapa Flow and connected to the nearby island of Burray by a causeway built in 1941 to stop passage of s ...
, and the biosecurity activities delivered on the non-linked islands of the archipelago". The project, which is run by a partnership including NatureScot,
RSPB Scotland and
Orkney Islands Council
The Orkney Islands Council ( gd, Comhairle Eileanan Arcaibh), is the local authority for Orkney, Scotland. It was established in 1975 by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and was largely unaffected by the Scottish local government changes ...
,
[ uses "humane DOC150 and DOC200 traps". A report issued in October 2020 stated that over 5,000 traps had been deployed. Specifics were provided as to the locations.
Not all was going well as of 15 January 2021, according to ]The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
which stated that the project "has been hit by alleged sabotage after the destruction and theft of traps that have also killed and injured household pets and other animals" but added that the £6 million programme was supported by most islanders. Another news item stated that some of the traps had "caught and killed family pets as well as hundreds of other animals". A subsequent report confirmed that "Police Scotland is investigating a number of incidents involving damage to and the theft of stoat traps in Orkney".
See also
* Environmental Standards Scotland
* National nature reserve (Scotland)
* Scottish Environment Protection Agency
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA; gd, Buidheann Dìon Àrainneachd na h-Alba) is Scotland's Environmental regulation, environmental regulator and national flood forecasting, flood warning and strategic flood risk management au ...
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
1990 establishments in Scotland
Scotland's Environmental and Rural Services
Book publishing companies of Scotland
Government agencies established in 1990
Organisations based in Inverness