Muirburn review requires a degree of proportionality
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COLUMN: From the Croft by Russell Smith
The three or four inches of snow we had doesn’t make life easier for animals or their keepers but at least it was well forecast. My perception is that the Met Office forecasts are getting better: with sufficient warning of snow or storms you can at least prepare for the worst.
Other complications for crofters can arise from well intentioned but not fully informed pressure from urban based groups. There are a few examples recently where some discussion beforehand could produce better proposals which would unite town and country not divide us.
A recent petition to the Scottish Parliament called for a ban on peat extraction for horticultural use. At least that is what the background notes were calling for. However, the wording of the petition itself called for a ban on all peat extraction which would include crofters’ centuries old rights to cut a small amount of peat each year for their own fire in a sustainable way. The Scottish Crofting Federation has pointed this out to the parliament committee and we will see how far the petition goes.
The Wildlife Management bill is out for consultation just now and, again, aims at legitimate targets but takes a blunderbuss approach which could cause all sorts of unintended collateral damage.
The muirburn proposals are designed to prevent burning of heather on peat for grouse moors but are framed to take in all burning of vegetation anywhere.
So, if you want to burn some whins on short grass (which would have negligible risk of wildfire spreading) you would need to be licensed – so you would have to have completed a short free online course AND have attended an all day outdoor course (which wouldn’t be free). So some degree of proportionality is needed.
Yes – if you are burning hectares of open ground then some form of training and licencing is appropriate.
No – if you are just burning a few gorse bushes or rushes here and there. And how would any breaches of the code be enforced if it didn’t get out of hand?
There is also no clear scientific evidence about the damage that muirburn does to the underlying peat as well as the vegetation if it is done properly.
Reportedly, a chocolate bar buried one inch below the surface doesn’t melt if the heather above is burnt in experiments! But if the burn isn’t controlled properly then the results can be disastrous so some rules are needed.
The other aspect of the draft bill that will affect crofters is the proposal to legislate for licencing and training if you want to put out traps for vermin. Again, if you are a gamekeeper managing a large estate then this could be appropriate. If you are a crofter with a stoat killing hens or rats eating into feed bags then it is overkill (pun intended).
And the problem of enforcing any breaches of the law apply here also.
By setting the parameters so broadly that a whole range of activities are included, we encourage people to disregard parts of the law and that is a dangerous precedent to set. Don’t we trust people anymore?
I would be keen to hear your experiences if you think you will be affected by these changes.
Here’s wishing a prosperous and healthy crofting new year to you all.
Russell Smith is a crofter at Bonar Bridge and a director of the Scottish Crofting Federation.
