Friends of the Ochils Newsletter 15: September 1999A vision for Central Scotland's lowland hillssome thoughts from the Friends of the Ochils chairman, Most readers of this newsletter live in what the geography books call "the lowlands of Scotland". Indeed some 4 million out of the 5 million of us live in the Central Belt. For all that we are classed as lowland dwellers there must be few spots in the lowland belt from which one cannot see any ranges of hills. Some of these ranges - such as the Pentlands - are popular recreation areas, others less so. Some are managed, others are not. Some suffer as a result of recreational use, others do not. There are differences between one range and the next, but also factors in common. The guest speaker at this year's AGM is Duncan Menteith, chief ranger with the Pentland Park Authority. One of our invited guests will be Councillor Charles Kennedy of East Dunbartonshire Council who is championing the cause of the Campsies. It is anticipated that the discussion after Duncan's presentation will focus on what the ranges have in common and what lessons can be learned regarding the future of the Ochils. The committee has come to the view that FotO's efforts alone are unlikely to achieve its objectives. FotO is a small voluntary organisation with no official locus and no paid staff. We need to recruit to our point of view organisations which have the necessary power to deliver what we seek. We are therefore inviting to the AGM representatives of the three local authorities concerned with the Ochils (planners, footpath officers, rangers), plus representatives of SNH and of a number of other countryside bodies. All the community councils around the Ochils fringe will be invited, together with organisations which take their recreation in and around these hills (such as Ochils Hill Runners, the Ochils Mountaineering Club and Auchterarder Walkers and Riders). With such a gathering we hope, by the end of the evening, to reach consensus that there should be an Ochils forum, council or advisory group, call it what you will, with the purpose of agreeing a common strategy for the protection of the Ochils. We see an absolute necessity for the local authorities plus SNH to take the lead in this initiative. In due course we foresee that small voluntary bodies such as ourselves will find a role as members of the council or advisory group. The FotO committee hopes that this vision of the future is shared by the members and we further hope you will join us on 18 November to consider this challenging prospect. |