ALLT DUINE: A WIND FARM TOO FAR
Year of Natural Scotland to coincide with defacement of one of our
country’s most beloved National Parks
The Year of Natural Scotland is a campaign which has been devised by Visit Scotland as a means of
promoting the country’s famous scenery and national heritage. 2013 will be a year-long celebration of all
that the great Scottish outdoors has to offer, but – with a Government decision on the 31 turbine wind
farm proposal to be built on the very edge of the Cairngorms National Park due in the same year –
campaigning groups are questioning where ‘Natural Scotland’ really sits on the Government’s list of
priorities.
The objective of the Year of Natural Scotland is to recognise Scotland’s scenery and heritage as
fundamental to its reputation, so it appears contradictory that an area chosen by campaigners to represent
these qualities is under threat. As part of the event’s programme, world-acclaimed landscape photographer
Colin Prior visited the area this year and said: "Scotland has an inspirational quality in the landscape...”
While renewable energy targets are a national priority, National Parks are as well. In June this year, Scottish
Ministers signed up to the Cairngorms National Park Partnership Plan 2012-2017. In the foreword to the
Plan, Stewart Stevenson MSP, Minister for Environment and Climate Change, clearly stated the
Government’s commitment to ‘ensuring that the Park’s stunning landscapes and special qualities are
conserved and enhanced for future generations’ [emphasis added]. Should the Allt Duine wind farm go
ahead, this decision will not only severely impact on the setting and fabric of the Park, but work against the
Year of Natural Scotland and the Plan’s objectives too.
The Allt Duine scheme represents one of 11 wind farms that either already exists or is at the application
stage on the edge of the Cairngorms National Park area. Campaigners from Save the Monadhliath
Mountains – a broad based coalition with the singular objective of protecting the Monadhliath Mountains
and National Park – are concerned about the cumulative effect these turbines will have, as well as the
potential damage that may occur to the area’s wildlife and visual amenity, which, in time, will impact on
the tourist appeal.
The Save the Monadhliath Mountains campaign is urging Fergus Ewing MSP – the Minister for both the
national energy and tourism portfolios – to take full account of the importance of renewable energy
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targets, the legislation in place to safeguard national parks and what Ministers have signed up to when
considering RWE Npower Renewables Ltd’s Allt Duine application.
Author and TV presenter, and representative of Save the Monadhliath Mountains, Cameron McNeish, said:
“There is a very fine balance to be struck between nature and renewable energy targets, although, in the
case of Allt Duine, granting permission would be a step too far.
“It is ironic that the Government, through Visit Scotland, is championing a campaign to conserve and
promote Scotland’s natural beauty, while considering the possibility of granting permission for 31 giant
turbines a few hundred metres from the boundary of a national park.
“We need to establish what is more important for the country. In my view, it would be entirely hypocritical
to grant permission for Allt Duine. I call on Fergus Ewing to urgently reconcile the two parts of his portfolio
– energy and tourism – in this case and refuse permission. He has plenty of good reasons for doing so.”

the Allt Duine site lies just a few hundred metres from the Park boundary.

the proposal would see the construction of 7.5km of fresh access tracks within the Park. These
tracks will be approximately 5m wide, with greater width of up to 15m at passing places and the
turns as they switchback their way up the steep slopes inside the National Park.

the potential cumulative effect of the Allt Duine wind farm, along with others proposed at
Stronelairg, Glenkirk and Tom nan Clach, is concerning.

the scheme would transform the Monadhliath skyline and contribute to the gradual encircling of
the north-western boundary of the Park with turbines visible from iconic high points like the
Ptarmigan Restaurant and popular Munros within the Monadhliaths as well as Ben Macdui, Cairn
Gorm and Braeriach.

according to the John Muir Trust, the turbines would be visible from 100 square miles of the Park.

the application is opposed by three significant statutory consultees – the Scottish Environment
Protection Agency, Cairngorms National Park Authority and Highland Council – in addition to the
John Muir Trust, the Mountaineering Council of Scotland, Scottish Rights of Way and Access Society
and, the Glenfeshie, Kinrara and Pitmain estates. Scottish Natural Heritage has expressed
considerable concerns.
ENDS
For all media enquiries: please contact John Stevenson on 07824 621 756 or
savemonadhliathmountains@gmail.com
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Notes to editor:
1. Cairngorms
National
Park
Partnership
Plan
2012-2017
can
be
found
here:
http://cairngorms.co.uk/resource/docs/publications/21062012/CNPA.Paper.1827.Cairngorms
%20National%20Park%20Partnership%20Plan%202012-2017.pdf
2. Who supports the Save Monadhliath Mountains campaign?
The SMM campaign represents the views of a wide range of people, including mountaineers,
hill-walkers, conservationists, tourism businesses, ornithologists and local communities.
Renowned mountaineer, writer and broadcaster, Cameron McNeish; outdoor author,
photographer and former President of the Mountaineering Council of Scotland, Chris
Townsend; Chief Officer of The Mountaineering Council of Scotland, David Gibson , and Chief
Executive of the John Muir Trust, Stuart Brooks, Tourism Ambassador for the Highlands,
Shirley Spear, are all backing the campaign, which in addition receives support from over
1,594 individuals and organisations.Scottish Campaign for National Parks, ScotlandLandscapes, Walk Highlands, UKHillwalking.com, MyOutdoors.co.uk and key local estates are
just a few examples of those backing the Save the Monadhliath Mountains campaign.
3. A little about the Monadhliath Mountains
The Monadhliath Mountains are a range of mountains running in a northeast to southwest
direction, the mountains lie on the western side of Strathspey, to the West of the Cairngorms
and to the South East of Loch Ness. There are four Munros in the Monadhliath mountains,
including Carn Dearg (945m), A’ Chailleach (930m), Geal Charn (926m) and Carn Sguilan
(920m). A’ Chailleach is in close proximity to the proposed development, and locations near
the summit will have line of sight to the wind-power stations. This summit is part of a popular
walking route for hill-walkers.
4. The SMM campaign believes the s.36 application should be turned down in order to:
Defend the setting of the Monadhliath Mountains and National Park for future generations
– the individual and cumulative impact of successive wind farms on the Monadliaths and the
Park is deeply worrying. Allt Duine is one of 11 developments (proposed or currently under
construction) on the edge of the National Park.
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Protect local wildlife – in particular, the applicant’s own Environmental Statement shows
direct impacts on key bird species including European protected Golden Eagle pairs. The two
Golden Eagle home-ranges, Alvie and SP11, are both tree-nesting and represent 11% of this
population in Scotland. These key species must be protected.
Safeguard jobs in tourism and recreational activities – the wind turbines will be visible from
summits inside the National Park, the Monadhliath Mountains, the Strathdearn Hills, the
Meall A Buachaille ridge, and Cromdale, Gaick, Dalnamein and the Atholl forest as well as
from key paths enjoyed by walkers, horse riders and cyclists.
Stem the continuing loss of Scotland’s dwindling wild land resources – the amount of
Scotland visually unaffected by built developments has decreased from 41% in 2002 to 28% in
2009, with wind farms being the main contributor to this dramatic reduction.
Preserve priority habitats on the Scottish biodiversity list – these include blanket bog, wet
heath, dry heath and lichen-rich heaths that will be in the path of the proposed access tracks
leading to the wind farm site beginning with habitats in the National Park itself.
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