Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park is alert to the negative impacts of antisocial behaviour and high visitor numbers. The Park Authority is considering improvements to the visitor experience.
Yesterday, 17th Marc, the Board of the National Park considered the issues and approved a report on the East Loch Lomond camping byelaw, introduced in June 2011 after decades-long problems in the area.
The report shows that the East Loch Lomond area to date has seen significant reductions in reports to police of antisocial behaviour, litter and damage to the environment. The Park Authority is glad to see the positive results achieved since 2011 but is fully aware that ongoing monitoring is vital to the long term success of the area.
Sandy Fraser, owner of the Oak Tree Inn in Balmaha on the east shore of the loch says: ‘For us, since the byelaw was introduced, we’ve seen a much wider variety of visitors to the area. Some have even told us that they’re returning after 30 years away. All in all it’s been good for business. Before the byelaw was brought in, we had been considering selling up as we’d had enough. We wouldn’t have built the tea room or the shop. But now we are expanding the business to cope with the increased demand from visitors looking for a quality experience.’
Kevin Lilburn, chair of the East Loch Lomond Management Group says: ‘Previously we suffered some sort of incident at my home pretty much every weekend in the summer, including litter, theft, vandalism and verbal or even physical intimidation.
‘Since the byelaws have been introduced, there have been none. Not one. That speaks for itself and official statistics tell a similar story. We have gone from a situation where my neighbours and I dreaded sunny days to one in which we can relax, enjoy where we live, and happily share the area with responsibly behaved visitors.
‘This hugely positive change came about because we, as a community, supported by the National Park Authority, brought together decision makers from all the key agencies such as Police Scotland and the Forestry Commission, shared concerns and constraints, listened to each others’ points of view and then came up with workable solutions. The whole process was a shining example of what can be achieved when a community is able to work closely with responsive and supportive public agencies and present a united front.’
Other areas of the Park also suffer from the negative impacts of overuse and antisocial behaviour. These are currently tackled with ongoing education, ranger and police patrols. Despite this considerable effort and investment, these problems continue to spoil the visitor experience at the most popular loch shore sites. As a result, the National Park Authority will be talking to communities, landowners, visitors, recreation groups and interested parties to hear their views on the extent of these issues and the possible solutions.
Fiona Logan, Chief Executive of Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park says: ‘With the invaluable support of the local community, the camping byelaw on East Loch Lomond was introduced as part of an extensive package of measures to tackle long standing problems from visitor pressure. Despite years of educational activity, rangers working with visitors, our high profile ‘Respect the Park’ campaign and collaboration with Police services, the visitor experience in this area was still being spoiled by the antisocial behaviour of some and, at peak periods, the sheer volume of visitors to the area.
‘Scottish Ministers asked for a report on the situation after three years of operating the byelaw. The paper put before our Board yesterday shows that there have been significant changes since the byelaw was put in place.
‘Right now we are in listening mode, in the very early stages of considering the extent of these Park-wide issues and possible solutions for each individual area. We are already heavily investing in new facilities in conjunction with our partners and the private sector to extend and improve the experience for visitors to the Park.
‘A great example of this is the development of the Sallochy Bay campsite and at Loch Lubnaig. At the end of the day, we want to ensure that all visitors and residents of the Park have a great experience and that our scenic loch shores are protected and enhanced for generations to come.’
This appears to be evidence of a welcome learning curve, The Chief Executive of the Park has not always been ‘in listening mode’ on community concerns, creating an unhelpful degree of alienation with the park’s communities. It will be constructive if those times have changed and the ‘listening mode’ becomes the orf the day.
The National Park notwithstanding, there is a general problem in the estrangement of city folk from the countryside, making scenically lovely rural areas a target for pretty rapacious weekend excursions and camping trips. Too often, rather than adapting to the different character and needs of rural paces, these occasions export the drunkenness, the noise, the aggression and the routine littering of town habits.
Part of Argyll is within the National Park – including the old Argyll Forest and half of Loch Lomond itself. Much of the rest of the Argyll mainland suffers, often badly, from the ravages of fishing and camping from Glasgow, with hefty general littering, cans and often unhygienic and repellent wastes abandoned on site – usually beaches or waterside locations.
There is often, as has been the experience also in the National Park, environmental damage as when branches are pulled off trees and young tress chopped down to feed camp fires.
There is a real and urgent educational need here. Part of the solution may be a much wider introduction of outdoor nurseries for young children, letting them grow up familiar with the natural world, confident in negotiating with it for leisure and exercise, unafraid – and respectful of its nature and of its uses by others.