Plans to reopen and extend Scotland’s only goldmine are set to become a battle that will test the commitment of Scotland’s national parks to conservation.
Concerns voiced by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa), Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), the RSPB and the Scottish Campaign for National Parks mean Scotgold, owner of the Cononish mine in Stirlingshire, has been asked for more details as part of a new consultation.
The company is seeking to re-open the mine, south of Tyndrum, to take advantage of gold’s increasing value.
Its application will now be the first planning decision to be made by the full board of Scotland’s first national park, instead of being delegated to its planning committee.
The 23 members of the board of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park are set to visit the site later this month and make their decision next month.
“This is our Beauly-Denny in terms of controversy,” said Fiona Logan, chief executive of the park authority, acknowledging the difficulty in reaching a decision and the strength of feeling on both sides.
It is a classic Scottish planning battle: in addition to the usual stand-off between environmentalists and developer, it has divided the community. The prospect of jobs and tourism has brought the community council on the side of the mine, but some tourism businesses dependent on hillwalkers and wildlife watchers are worried about negative impact.
There is an additional twist to Scotgold’s application to extract 72,000 tonnes of ore a year. The primary duty of the national park authority is to conserve and enhance the natural and cultural heritage.
However, it is not just the guardian of wildlife and landscape and the promoter of understanding and enjoyment of the special qualities of the 720 square miles in its care. It also has the promotion of the sustainable and economic development of the communities in its area as one of its four core aims.
Where there is a conflict, conservation takes precedence over development. As the planning authority, the park must decide whether to grant Scotgold’s application and if so what conditions to impose on the development.
Logan’s view on planning applications is that “the park has to start from a stance that we are open for business”.
She has sought to move the most contentious applications away from confrontation by pre-planning engagement between applicants and the planners. “Now that we have a national park local plan we have the confidence to have the conversation in a positive way. So we can say something is not acceptable but suggest alternatives.”
The goldmine does not fall into that category, since the former owners had permission from the previous planning authority, Stirling Council, to operate it.
Scotgold’s proposal is more ambitious and includes crushing ore and extracting the minerals in a flotation process that would produce a spoil heap known as tailings, which would be drained into a holding pool.
There is particular concern about the impact on the River Cononish, a headwater of the River Tay, one of the world’s great salmon rivers and designated a Special Area of Conservation for salmon, otter and lamprey.
Because salmon return to spawn in their native rivers, the Cononish fish contribute to the genetic diversity of the Tay salmon.
Chris Sangster, chief executive of Scotgold, is already amending some proposals, including the design of a weir, and has said: “We are confident we will be able to respond to their concerns”.
SNH has said it is essential that the applicant proves in advance that the River Tay conservation area can be adequately safeguarded.
The RSPB is concerned about disturbance of birds during the nesting season including protected birds of prey.
The Scottish Campaign for National Parks argues that introducing a mining operation on this scale would damage the reputation of the park.
These objections have enraged John Riley, chair of Strathfillan Community Council. “Last year was a very bad year for tourism and a lot of businesses are in danger of going down. The community needs year-round jobs because there is no career development in seasonal tourism businesses.
“Scottish gold is at a premium and a state-of-the-art exhibition on mining and even visits to the mine would become a major tourist attraction. With goldsmiths working on jewellery for sale, it would continue long after the ten years of the mine,” he said.
Scotsman: 7-7-10