SUSTAINABILITY

FEATURES
As the role of the car increased and
outdoor recreation continued to rise
there was increasing demand for more
countryside. In 1970 the Defence Lands
Committee were appointed to review
the holding of land in the UK for
defence purposes, with a view to make
recommendations to the Secretary of
State for Defence as to what changes
could be made to improve access for
public recreation and amenity. The
Nugent report was published. It is
arguable that the content was ahead
of its time.
The new millennium brought
legislation that potentially had
serious implications for the MOD.
The Countr yside and Rights of Way
Act (CROW) 2000 offered greater
freedom of public access on foot to
mountain, moorland, heath and down
in England and Wales.
Extensive consultation between DIO,
Countryside Agency, stakeholders and
user groups, as well as effective use of
CROW legislation ensured the MOD
estate was protected accordingly.
Areas of land, unsuitable for unfettered
public access were excluded from
designation. Work with Ordnance
Survey saw the creation of a new
mapping symbol informing people of
where managed access was available,
thus identifying military restrictions
that may apply.
As the CROW Act was rolling out the
Lands Reform (Scotland) Act 2003
was taking shape, fundamentally
changing public access and recreation
in Scotland. Under the new legislation
each local and national park authority
was given the duty to draw up a plan
of core paths in their area - ‘core paths’
form the basic framework of key local
routes and are generally the most
popular paths. Of greater significance
was the granting of a public right
to exercise responsible recreational
access rights over most land and
inland water in Scotland, at any time of
day or night.
inclusion of specific military lands
guidance in the Scottish Outdoor
Access Code, clearly defining MOD
land as countryside that had to
be treated differently. ART sought
to protect sensitive locations by
presenting the MOD’s interests in the
Core Path Planning Process where
regional Access Authorities sought
to designate paths across MOD land.
Public information panels were also
designed for the Scottish Estate
highlighting to visitors site byelaws,
boundaries and marked trails.
The passing of CROW and LR(S)A were
catalysts for a ground breaking step
by the MOD in 2006 and a resurfacing
of those views voiced by the Nugent
report of 1973. This was the adoption of
a policy presumption in favour of public
access wherever it is compatible with
operational and military training uses,
public safety, security, conservation and
the interests of tenants.
This was a commitment by the
MOD to actively strike the balance
between the two afore mentioned
arguments. The military will fulfil its
training objectives and in turn, where
practicably possible, managed public
access will be delivered.
This policy adoption would come
at a challenging time. Traditional
pastimes such as walking and horse
riding are ever present, but thank s
to new technology the countr yside
is witnessing a rapid rise in new and
evolving activities. These include
mountain biking and off-road
driving, climbing and kayaking, and
more recently, longboarding and
Liaison between DIO and Scottish
National Heritage ensured the
Visitors to the training estate in Scotland can take advantage of the information panels to inform their visit © Crown
Sanctuary 44 • 2015
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