Under consideration PE2119: Help protect the Black Grouse by reviewing how new forestry schemes are regulated and implemented
Calling on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to review the operation of the Woodland Creation scheme and:
make it mandatory that all new deer fencing is marked with wooden droppers where necessary as it is erected to help prevent bird strike
require all work on these schemes to be stopped or paused by the end of March to protect ground nesting birds
require NatureScot to carry out initial and annual Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) to consider what effects woodland creation is having on resident wildlife
ensure any recipient of a forestry grant who then puts the forest up for sale must return the grant in full when sold.
Background information
A new Woodland Creation Scheme received a grant of over £2.5m from Scottish Forestry within the Cairngorms National Park. At planning stage the agents stated that wooden droppers will be used to mark the new 27km deer fence, which help prevent birds being killed if they fly into the fence. However, bamboo canes, which are cheaper and less effective, were used resulting in black grouse being killed by flying into this fence.
Black grouse are a red-listed bird of serious conservation concern, numbers are declining rapidly.
Scottish Forestry are the regulators for this scheme but do not enforce certain issues which were agreed upon at planning stage. Work was supposed to stop by the end of March to save ground nesting birds from disturbance, but in 2023 and 2024 work continued into May. The list of non-compliance issues with this scheme is considerable, but there's not enough room to list them all here.
643 signatures
This petition is now under consideration
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