SGA wildfire proposal adopted in Cairngorms

Demands made by the Scottish Gamekeepers Association (SGA) have been included in the draft of the Cairngorms National Park Integrated Wildfire Management Plan.

In 2023, following one of the worst wildfires in living memory near Cannich Village in the Scottish Highlands, the SGA wrote to the Scottish Government saying it should be a mandatory requirement for landholdings to have wildfire management plans. This suggestion has now been adopted by the Cairngorms National Park.

Chief Executive of the Moorland Association, Andrew Gilruth told ST: “The SGA must be congratulated on securing the adoption of its recommendations by the Cairngorms National Park. Here in England, our Park Authorities have their heads firmly in the sand. It’s a bizarre situation because we have had a moorland wildfire the size of the Cairngorms one. Perhaps bureaucrats in England are waiting for a death before they are willing to take any action.”

The news comes following weeks of drier weather in the UK where wildfires have broken out in Wales, and most recently in Cumbria where over 40 blazes were reported. Last week, crews from Shap and Penrith were called to a blaze on Ralfland Common, with the station remarking: “It’s clear to see that the management, or rather lack of, across the county’s uplands in recent years is having a huge impact on increasing the risk of wildfire.”