All five of Scotland's existing ski centres were able to open before Christmas this year. CairnGorm was earlier this year able to open for business just 145 days after the close of the previous season. During the debate, Mr Stone told Minister for Public Health and Sport, Shona Robison, "The Ross and Cromarty District Council took to an advanced and costed stage an exciting project to establish skiing on the slopes of Ben Wyvis, near Dingwall.
"Unfortunately, all those years ago the then Conservative Government refused to grant the capital consent to the council and the project was shelved. While I cannot ask the minister to commit to capital spend, will she agree to let her officials meet me to see the documents, which are very interesting, and to discuss whether the project could be revived in some future year?" Ms Robison said the Scottish Government "recognises the valuable economic benefits and employment opportunities that snowsports bring to Scotland and we continue to support their development".
She added, "I am always happy to meet or have my officials meet to discuss such matters, but we have to recognise the real constraints on capital investment across the board, which make it extremely difficult to make capital investment of that nature. "There is, of course, always the opportunity for commercial interest in such ventures. I encourage Jamie Stone to encourage, in turn, commercial interest in that initiative."
Speaking after the debate, Mr Stone said, "This was something that was very much being talked about when I was first elected to the former district council. I thought it was a really good idea. It has always seemed a shame that it just died out. You could easily see how it might fill hotels in Dingwall and Strathpeffer and provide an off-season boost to the tourism industry."
A number of proposals for snowsports development on Ben Wyvis, which is protected by Scottish Natural Heritage as a National Nature Reserve, were tabled during the 1970s and '80s. Several envisaged a mountain railway and one floated the idea of an interchange station on the Kyle line.
Contacted for comment this week, Scottish Natural Heritage spokesman Calum Macfarlane said, "This has been talked about on and off for more than 20 years and has not really come to anything so far."We have certainly never ruled it out."He stressed that important criteria must be met when considering any changes on the peak.
These include abiding by important internationally recognised nature conservation agreements and ensuring access for the recreational use of the Ben for the many non-skiers who currently enjoy the Munro. Easter Ross-based SNP Highlands and Islands MSP Rob Gibson, also a former Ross and Cromarty District Councillor who was involved in the early debates over ski development and the possibility of building a funicular railway there, is less enthusiastic.
He said, "Today we know better. Ben Wyvis has a high environmental status."Fragile soils and erosion don't require organised downhill skiing to endanger the protected habitat. "Why endanger Ben Wyvis for profit? Why not encourage cross-country skiing instead? We've seen cross city skiing in the December deep freeze."Many trails around the Ross-shire hills could be a big attraction, without expense and degradation. "Old drove roads are an ideal start, for example between big and little Ben Wyvis. "That's the popular Scandinavian sport. Why not here?"
Dingwall and Seaforth councillor Peter Cairns urged caution but said he'd be happy to see an updated feasibility study. "If it has not come to pass so far, there may be a valid reason for that. In theory, something that close to Inverness would be really good. "One factor is that in the current climate, Highland Council's ability to be a guarantor for such schemes is extremely limited. "Let's look at it by all means, bearing in mind it's a sensitive area and there's a lot of hurdles to cross."
Fellow ward councillor David Chisholm acknowledged many local communities rely on tourism. "If Jamie Stone can get the money together for a feasibility study, I'd certainly throw a tenner into the pot to at least have a look at it." Cllr Margaret Paterson, another Dingwall and Seaforth representative, said, "It wouldn't do any harm to get people's views.
"I know the reaction at the time was very mixed."It would have to go through the whole consultation process again."
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