Cairngorms National Park Partnership Plan 2022-27 - Other - Page 19
Striking the right balance
One of the key points around a management plan
that takes a long-term view (in this case 25 years
and beyond) is the need to be realistic and make
clear that there will be trade-offs.
The dial cannot be ‘turned up’ on everything.
We will look for areas where we can deliver
multiple benefits and mitigate impacts, but
we will also be honest about areas where
compromise will be required.
For example, the climate is changing and this will
affect the species and habitats that can survive in
the Cairngorms National Park. Scaling up nature
recovery and ecosystem restoration may mean a
change to the abundance and distribution of certain
species. Equally, it might not be possible – or indeed
desirable – to get all features on designated sites
into favourable condition if our collective goal is
long-term ecological restoration. There may be a
need for controls on holiday rental properties to
ensure housing is affordable for local people.
These are all points of reasonable debate – and we
have heard views on all sides during the extensive
consultation on this plan – but it is essential that we
strike the right balance to ensure the National Park
thrives for both nature and people in the future. This
means having difficult conversations with people
from all walks of life who care about the National
Park and making important decisions, backed up by
the best available evidence, for the long term.
As the data and evidence changes over the next
five years we will also need to adapt and change
our approach to managing the National Park,
reflecting the best knowledge available.
Fair and just transition
To address the climate and nature crises, we
will need to act at unprecedented speed and
scale across all parts of society. Change of this
nature is never easy and we need to be careful to
bring everyone with us on the journey. It will be
crucial that we do not impact any one group of
people unduly, and that we use the resources and
economic changes to bring benefits to as wide a
range of people as possible. This is what we mean
by a fair and just transition.
Balancing the objectives contained within this plan
with some of the fundamental changes that they
will bring about will require careful discussion and
weighing-up of different priorities. Understanding
and addressing concerns about the changes to
current ways of life does not negate the need for
transformative action, but it will make it easier
to pursue those aims collectively. Hard choices
will still need to be made; however, an approach
which listens to and involves communities of
place and interest in the National Park has the
best possible chance of delivering a decarbonised
and nature-based economy where people and
nature thrive together.
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