Mapping the Scottish wildlands (and thought's on rewilding)

Mapping the Scottish wildlands: from idea to policy in the last ten years

Steve CarverWildland Research Institute

Steve Carver, Wildland Research Institute, University of Leeds

Outline• Wildland: from definitions to mapping• Developing policy in Scotland• The current state of play• Relevance to the rest of the UK• Back to the future



Scottish wildlandDefinition… “Wild land in Scotland is relatively remote and inaccessible, not noticeably

affected by contemporary human activity, and offers high-quality opportunities toescape from the pressures of everyday living and to find physical and spiritual

refreshment.” (NTS, 2002)

Policy aim… “There are parts of Scotland where the wild character of the landscape, its related recreational value and potential for nature are such that these areas should be

safeguarded against inappropriate development or land-use change.” (SNH, 2002)



Attributes Main Criteria

Perceived naturalness Functioning natural habitatsUnmodified catchment systems

Lack of constructions or other artefacts No recent buildings/worksLittle impact from large structures outside area

Little evidence of contemporary land uses Little effects from older remainsOnly extensive grazing and field sports

Rugged or otherwise challenging terrain Striking topographic features and difficult terrainNatural settings for recreation providing hard physical exercise and challenge

Remoteness and inaccessibility Distance from settlement and communicationsLimited access either by scale of area and/or lack of easy access

Extent of area Area sufficient to engender feeling of remoteness and solitude

(After SNH, July 2002) http://www.snh.org.uk/pdfs/polstat/pd-wsc.pdf

Attributes of wild land

http://www.snh.org.uk/pdfs/polstat/pd-wsc.pdf


Can we map wildness?• Definitions and attributes– NPPG14, SNH and NTS Policy

Statements• Technology– GIS and available digital map database

• Methodological considerations– Perception vs ecology?– Discrete mapping vs continuum

concept… “from the paved to the primeval” (Nash, 1983)

– Scaling and repeatability


Early inspiration

• Bob Aitken’s PhD thesis (1977) “Wilderness Areas in Scotland”

• Mike McCloskey and Heather Spalding’s reconnaissance level inventory of global wilderness (1989)

• Rob Lesslie’s work developing Australian National Wilderness Inventory (1985)Aitken, Robert (1977). Wilderness Areas in Scotland, unpublished Ph.D. Thesis. University of Aberdeen. Aberdeen.J. Michael McCloskey and Heather Spalding (1989) A Reconnaissance-Level Inventory of the Amount of Wilderness Remaining in the World. Ambio Vol. 18, No. 4 pp. 221-227.Lesslie, R. G. and Taylor, S. G. (1985) The Wilderness Continuum Concept and its Implication for Australian Wilderness Preservation Policy, Biological Conservation, 32, 309 – 333.

“Emptied, not empty”


Maps courtesy of Bob Aitken


J. Michael McCloskey and Heather Spalding, Ambio Vol. 18, No. 4 (1989), pp. 221-227

A Reconnaissance-Level Inventory of the Amount of Wilderness Remaining in the World


Australian National Wilderness Inventory 1986-1996

Global wilderness assessment 1998 Maps courtesy of Rob Lesslie


Early mapscirca 1996-2000


Theses and ideas: Policy development: Maps and documents:1977: Bob Aitken’s PhD thesis

1980’s: 1998: Dominic Habron’s PhD thesis 1999: NPPG14 1996: Carver draws a map

2000: Steffen Fritz’s PhD thesis 2002: SNH and NTS policy statements

2004: SNH report on historic trends in wild land

2008: Real-time viewshed tool 2007: SNH Wild land perception study2009: European Parliament Resolution on Wilderness

2008: CNP wildness study

2011: Follow up SNH perception study

2009: JMT maps and vision2010: LLTNP wildness study and ScotGov report on wild land in Europe2011: Draft European wilderness map

2012: SNH Phase 1 map and EU/Natura 2000 guidelines in wilderness2013: SNH Phase 2/3 maps, ScotGov NPF3 on wild land, draft EU/EEA wilderness register and Final European wilderness map

A wildland timeline


Mapping wildness in the national parks• Attribute maps and their variants

– Perceived naturalness– Absence of modern human artefacts– Rugged and challenging nature of

terrain– Remoteness from mechanised

access• Wildness maps and their variants

– Equal weighting– Scottish / national park residents’

weights– Fuzzy modelling

Table 4.1 Naturalness classifications applied to land cover features

LCM class BHSUB NClass Supplementary Data Criteria NClass

Broad-leaved woodland

1.1 5 Highlands Birchwood’s

Semi-natural 5

Mixed 4

Planted 3

Coniferous woodland 2.1 3 Highlands Birchwood’s

Semi-natural 5

Mixed 4

Planted 3

Arable & horticultural 4.1, 4.2, 4.3 2

Improved grass 5.1, 5.2 2

Neutral grass 6.1 3

Calcareous grass 7.1 3

Acid grass 8.1 4

Bracken 9.1 4

Dwarf shrub heath 10.1, 10.2 4 LCS 88 4

Bog 12.1 5

Inland Water 13.1 0OS MasterMap, OS 1:25,000

Natural 5

Loch Katrine 4

Impounded 3

Montane habitats 15.1 5

Inland rock 16.1 5

Built up areas 17.1, 17.2 0Edited LCM built up areas, OS Meridian, OS MasterMap

1

Supra littoral rock 18.1 5

Supra littoral sediment

19.1 5

Littoral rock 20.1 5

Littoral sediment 21.1 5

Saltmarsh 21.2 4

Sea / Estuary 22.1 5 NextMap DTM 5

Perceived naturalness of land cover

Absence of modern human artefacts

Modelling impacts from wind energy











A wildland timeline











A wildland timeline


A national map• 'Search Areas for Wild Land (2002)…

“most significant and valued areas of wild land would be found”

• Recent work using GIS techniques in a more objective and robust approach in three phases:• Phase I: mapped the relative

wildness for all of Scotland using the four physical attributes

• Phase II: analysed the data to identify the largest and most wild areas (producing a long list of possible areas of wild land).

• Phase III: used informed judgement to select areas of wild land character, and draw provisional boundaries.

• 'Search Areas for Wild Land (2002)… “most significant and valued areas of wild land would be found”

• Recent work using GIS techniques in a more objective and robust approach in three phases:• Phase I: mapped the relative

wildness for all of Scotland using the four physical attributes

• Phase II: analysed the data to identify the largest and most wild areas (producing a long list of possible areas of wild land).

• Phase III: used informed judgement to select areas of wild land character, and draw provisional boundaries.

A quick comparison between approaches

JMT Vision map

SNH national map

EU/EEA map


The current state of play• Strong support for the conservation of wild land in

Scotland– 91% of Scottish residents thought that it was important

and 70% thought it very important to have wild places (SNH, 2008)

– Support in Highlands and Islands for wild land designation outweighs opposition by 2 to 1 (JMT, 2014)

• 2013-2014: Consultation on Phase III core areas– 73% of response in support vs 21% against– Most opposition from energy companies

• March 2014: All party support in Scottish Parliament– Phase III map and support for wildland to be re-instated

into NPF3 document– Deferral awaiting result of 18 September independence

referendum?


Relevance to rest of the UK?• Model to follow

– NRW and NE develop own wildness maps?

– Facilitate UK-wide comparisons– Analysis of landscape/habitat

fragmentation, isolation and opportunities for improving connectivity

• Targeting areas for rewilding and habitat restoration– Making REAL Space for Nature! – Justification for core areas and zonation

(e.g. IUCN categories 1a/b, 2 and 3?)


Back to the continuum…

13 2

?

Southerscales Nature Reserve

Higher Level Stewardship: agri-environment subsidy payment over 10 years of the agreement

“The Trust made Southerscales stockproof and in 1987 was able to re-introduce the traditional grazing regime”

SSSI Unit 66

GRAZED

Ungrazed since 1974

An true ecological restoration!SSSI Unit 68/69

Limestone pavements of the Yorkshire Dales Southerscales - grazed

Scar Close – not grazed

Ecological restoration - not “rewilding” with herbivores (=farming)

Angelica Elder PrimroseAsh Field scabious RaspberryBaneberry Figwort Red currantBilberry Globe flower Rigid buckler fernBirch Greater burnet Rock roseBird cherry Green spleenwort RowanBirds eye primrose Guelder rose Solomon’s sealBirds foot trefoil Hard head St John’s wortBlackthorn Hawthorn Stone brambleBloody cranesbill Hazel StrawberryBluebell Heart’s tongue fern SycamoreBracken Heather ValerianBrittle bladder fern Honeysuckle VioletBugle Ivy Water avensButterwort Juniper Welsh poppyCinquefoil Lesser meadow rue Willows x 3Cowberry Lily of the valley Wood anemoneClimbing corydalis Limestone oak fern Wood cranesbillDaffodil Meadow sweet Wood sageDevil’s bit scabious Melancholy thistle Wood sorrelDog rose Milkwort YarrowDog’s mercury Orpine YewEarly purple orchid

AshBaneberryBlackthornDog’s mercuryFigwortFragrant orchidGooseberryHawthornHazelHeart’s tongue fernIvyLesser meadow rueLimestone oak fernRaspberryRigid buckler fernRowanSycamoreVioletWelsh poppyWood anemoneWood sageWood sorrel

Species of Scar Close and Southerscales

Southerscales Scar Close

“a trajectory of restoration that was aided only by the distribution systems of wild nature, the reclaiming of species mediated through the natural

force of wind, the assistance of birds and mammals, and the seeds in their droppings”

Ecological restoration - reclaiming soil, humus, wildlife, natural processes


The 6 Rules of Re(al)wilding1. Don’t confuse biodiversity and cultural landscapes with wildness or naturalness

• They are not the same thing!

2. Nature can exist and thrive without our intervention• Traditional farming/forest practices only support those species that have adapted to those landscapes

maintained by agriculture/forestry (i.e. not a natural or wild biodiversity)• We don’t have to continually keep wild nature in check

3. Natural succession should be the Favourable Conservation Status (FCS) for rewilding projects• Nature isn’t natural when held in stasis by continual human intervention/interference• Natural processes and trophic cascades create natural patterns and distributions of species• Allow nature to take care of itself in wider land/seascapes!

4. Work towards a continuum of approaches• From HNVF and nature gardening (traditional species/habitat conservation) through rewilding-lite

(“Making Space for Nature”) to true rewilding with full range of native species (including top carnivores) where wilderness is the intended outcome

5. Work towards a continuum of landscapes • From urban (places to live and work), through intensive farming (to feed ourselves) and traditional

farmed landscapes (that look pretty... England's Green and Pleasant Land) and managed nature reserves (where we can “play at nature”)

• …BUT we still need core wild(er)ness where we step back entirely and let nature be natural regardless of cultural niceties and temptation to meddle

6. Think BIG, think BOLD! • Nature isn’t a “political” animal… So don’t treat it as such


Thank you

Questions?Email: [email protected]

URL: www.wildlandresearch.org

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Mapping the Scottish wildlands (and thought's on rewilding)