Shetland Local Landscape Designation Review: Final Report

3.27 The result of this step indicates where sub-character areas, of high landscape
quality, occur within LCUs, and whether these can be associated with
adjacent areas in other LCUs to form potential candidate Local Landscape
Areas.
Application of Practical Criteria
3.28 The second part of the analysis of the Area of Search is the application of
‘practical criteria’. The Guidance emphasises the need for ‘integrity’ in terms
of the coherence and size of candidate areas for designation. The following
practical criteria were therefore applied to inform choices over inclusion or
exclusion:
identity and coherence;
suitable size;
other designations; and
boundary features.
3.29 It is important that candidate Local Landscape Areas represent recognisable
landscape units, with a logical theme or focus: for example a group of hills, a
coastal landscape, or a crofting landscape. Very small areas of identified
quality have not been taken forward in isolation, since it would be impractical
to apply policy at this scale. Similarly, where larger areas of high quality are
identified, the candidate Local Landscape Areas have been defined to focus on
the core landscapes which most merit designation.
3.30 In terms of other designations, it was agreed with SIC that the new
designation should not overlap with the existing National Scenic Area.
3.31 The aim has been to select strong and permanent boundaries for the
candidate Local Landscape Areas where possible. These include roads and
tracks, watercourses and water bodies, and coastal features. Other less
permanent features, such as field boundaries, and topographic features such
as ridgelines which define visual envelopes, have also been employed.
3.32 Where there is a lack of obvious boundary features, it has been necessary to
move outwards to the next available boundary, and to include areas of lower
merit, rather than to move inwards and reduce the area of higher merit
included within the candidate Local Landscape Area, particularly where this
might have an impact on the integrity of the area in question.
3.33 In some cases, the decision as to whether or not to include a specific area
within a candidate Local Landscape Area was clear cut. However, most of
the landscape is not so easily defined, and landscape quality is often variable at
a detailed level. In many cases therefore, the decision required fine
judgements to be made.
3.34 The process of analysing the Area of Search and identifying candidate Local
Landscape Areas is set out in Section 8.
Shetland Islands Local Landscape Designation Review
Land Use Consultants
Final Report 15 October 2011