Caithness Clearances planned for the 21st century?

Make sure you have your say as the Caithness Area Plan evolves

We identify what you can do to help stand up to the continuing attacks on the lives of Caithness residents.  We want to see Highland Council act with more responsibility for the well being of Caithness rural residents in particular.

What you can do

Have your say at every stage in the preparation of the Caithness Area Place Plan by registering, responding and signing up for notifications of new versions of the Plan. Site link here. Email your views to them. Key messages are “No more turbines”, “Preserve what is left of the important Caithness landscape”, “No industrialisation of rural locations”. If you live in an area that is producing a Places Plan, make your views known there also.

We’ve prepared some background information on rural representation including what one person submitted by way of feedback on the current process. At the time of this publication only four people have signed up to the ‘Stay Informed’ feature for the Caithness Area Place Plan.

Here's why we are bringing attention to this -

Almost half (46%) of Caithness residents live outwith the main population centres of Wick, Thurso, Castletown and Halkirk and they have been under attack for some while. Highland Council’s Onshore Windfarm Policy shows no regard for rural residents of Caithness and the revision of the plan in 2021, simply twisted the knife by removing protective bubbles from around Watten, Dunbeath and elsewhere.

We are now at a point when even the most devout fanatic of turbine proliferation can surely recognise that the Highland Council Onshore Windfarm Policy is no longer appropriate.  Not only is it clear that most residents of Caithness don’t want to see any more turbines, the need for more turbines in order to satisfy net zero targets has disappeared.  Those interested in more turbines are simply wanting to make easy money or perhaps  wishing to burnish their own political careers.

A new attack!

Have Highland Council opened a new front in their attack on the quality of life of rural residents? You might think so when you read  the draft Caithness Area Places Plan.  Here’s what they say:

"P28 section 3 - How well does the area function

Car ownership is seen by many as essential because of the paucity, cost, duration of journey, and unreliability of public transport alternatives.

Disappointingly, the need to travel has been magnified by sporadic housing in the countryside development by those not willing or able to find suitable accommodation within the main settlements. Locating additional facilities and services within the major centres of Wick and Thurso could help reverse this trend so that a higher proportion of people’s daily needs could be within a shorter more sustainable journey."

In other words, it is seen as acceptable to make life more difficult for rural residents to satisfy some perceived notion that everything is determined by reducing the need to travel. There is no recognition of why people might choose to live in rural locations, whether through generations of family residence, agricultural employment or simply a strong preference for rural living, despite the known hardships.

The overall impression gained from reading the draft report is that it has been prepared by individuals with no clear understanding or direct experience of the lives of rural Caithness residents. Nor is there any evidence of making the necessary level of effort to ensure that there is effective consultation with rural residents, the focus having been on information sessions in urban centres.  However, it is acknowledged that getting people engaged is no easy task and some effort has been made by Highland Council in setting up a consultation  infrastructure.

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Please don't hesitate to get in touch if you can help us or we can help you!

Interested in helping to save the landscape and rural environment of Caithness?

Save Caithness has two main aims: i) to embark on carefully selected specialist campaigns intended to take a pro-active approach to protecting our rural environment and raising awareness of the serious issues faced by residents and wildlife and ii) to provide useful general guidance on how to object to energy related planning applications along with facilitating access to more detailed information about current applications  Stay updated about our activities by signing up for our mailing list here.