Outcomes

National Scenic Areas: Scottish Natural Heritage's Advice to Government

The Government requested that we consider whether the series might include a wider range of landscapes than the present series, with its emphasis on the mountainous and coastal landscapes of the north and west. In Chapter 5 of the consultation paper we considered how best to approach such a possible expansion of the present NSA series. At this stage there can be no presumption that the present series should be expanded but, twenty years on from the original surveys, there is a case to examine as to whether the present 40 areas adequately cover the full range of Scotland's best landscapes. The consultation did not probe far into debate about the location of any new candidate areas, although a few respondents did make suggestions (usually a claim for their own local area) and these ideas can be held over until any exercise to consider the expansion of the series is activated.