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Plockton Village Hall on Monday 11 June
2001, 7.30 pm |
| Present |
Iain Turnbull (Facilitator)
Lynn Bruce
Iain MacLennan
Dorothy Pearson
Donald Ross
Alex Townend
Geoff Webster |
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| The subject of cattle grazing in the village was the main topic of discussion and the aim of the meeting was to seek to find ways of alleviating the problems associated with this traditional activity. |
| Iain Turnbull opened the meeting by explaining that the National Trust for Scotland had taken the position that the crofters appeared to have rights to graze their cattle within the village and that most of the areas that had not been feued were considered to be part of the common grazings. He added that there had been a long history of debate about the cattle grazing in the village and that some people were unconvinced that the area was common grazings. So far no legal challenge had been made to contest this status and therefore the Trust's view was that this was the accepted position. As a result of this and the obvious strength of feeling within some elements of the non-crofting community, the Trust had volunteered to try to facilitate a discussion with the aim of finding ways of minimising this problem. He stressed that the Trust would not act as arbiter in this case and that if anyone was not happy with any proposals, then they would need to seek a legal solution on their own. |
| Mr Smith from the Crofters Commission stated that, as far as they were concerned, the village was a crofting village and that the crofters had traditionally grazed their cattle there. There had been some cases elsewhere regarding damage to private property caused by livestock and there was undoubtedly a change in the composition of crofting communities, which leads to difficulties sometimes. He said he had spoken to the three active crofters and felt that they appeared willing to discuss alternatives but felt very strongly that they could in no way commit any of the other shareholders to an agreement without first holding a meeting to seek their approval. |
| Each of those present was invited to state their views on the current situation of cattle in the village. In general the non-crofters explained that their main concerns related to health, from E.Coli and more recently ringworm, and the generally unpleasant mess left behind, which was frequently brought into houses on feet, etc. The main point appeared to be that the number of cattle using the village was larger than previously and that they were not necessarily removed in the evenings. It was agreed that it might not be entirely desirable to have the cattle removed completely but improved management would be required. |
| The view from the crofters was generally that they were legally entitled to graze their cattle in the village; the problem had been made worse by certain access routes being closed off by gates and the development of the larger car park in the south end of Harbour Street; and that there were not necessarily more cattle using the village than previously. They showed a willingness to discuss options and to look at ways of making the management of stock access easier. They recommended that the old traditional access routes be reopened to allow the cattle easier access in and out of the village, thus reducing the need for them to walk along Harbour Street. They explained that they intended to hold a meeting during the summer, when more of the shareholders were in the village, to discuss the best way forward. |
| Action: |
| There was a long discussion on what action might help to reduce
the problem, including complete removal of cattle from the village, managed
access with a limit to the number of animals in the village at any particular
time, no change to the current position. It was generally agreed by those
present that some form of access management would be beneficial but this would
require some fencing to ensure that the cattle could be kept out as required.
Iain Turnbull suggested that it might be possible to erect a fence behind
Frithard Road and Camas an Arbhair, along the top of the Brae crofts and down
to the main road into the village. The use of a cattle grid and a fence down
to the shore would then effectively make it possible to close the village
to stock. There would be need to be gates on the Brae road and a lay-by at
the cattle grid to allow access as agreed and to allow maintenance of the
grid. He estimated that the total cost of this work would be c £20,000-25,000
depending on the actual length of the fence and the requirements of the Roads
Department regarding the cattle grid. The crofters might be able to secure
a 55% grant from CCAGS leaving a balance of c £11,000. If the non-crofting
community could find a means to fund this shortfall, the crofters said they
might be willing to consider this option, but it would depend upon the views
of the other shareholders. It was agreed that it might be possible to secure
additional funds from the Crofters Commission's Crofting Community Development
Scheme and/or from the LEC as a tourism development. |
| After a long discussion the following action points were agreed: |
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Crofters to meet during July/August to discuss the proposed solution based upon the fencing idea set out above with agreed limits to stock numbers and duration of use of the village for grazing (still to be discussed in detail). |
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The Community Council to discuss the proposals and make recommendations accordingly. |
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This group to meet again once these two meetings had been held (IGT to arrange). |
| Wider Discussion |
| Iain Turnbull raised a further point at the end of the meeting by suggesting that it would be perhaps a good idea to establish a forum for discussion of development ideas in the village. His aim would be to facilitate community involvement in NTS related decisions and to primarily look at development related issues, such as housing, tourism management, car parking, etc. He asked if the members of this group would be willing to continue in this kind of role informally until a more formal structure could be set in place. Generally the idea was well received and it was agreed that there was a need to discuss these types of issues more widely. Iain Turnbull stressed that he wished to see any such forum have representation from both the crofting and non-crofting sections of the community. He agreed to pursue the establishment of a forum and to think about the best way to encourage active involvement by residents of the village. |
| Next Meeting |
| No date was set for a follow-up meeting but Wednesday 29 August 2001 at 7.30 pm in Plockton Village Hall, subject to availability, is proposed. This date assumes that the crofters will have held their meeting by then and that all participants are available. Please confirm to Iain Turnbull (01599 566 325) that you would be able to make this date as soon as possible. |
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