Outdoor Talk - John Muir Trust press for new wild land legislation

Leading conservation charity the John Muir Trust is calling for a total rethink on how to protect the UK's remaining wilderness areas. The Wild Land Campaign aims to:

secure greater statutory protection for wild land areas throughout the UK
secure a new statutory designation to protect wild land in Scotland.
raise awareness of the importance of wild land and wild places in the UK
increase understanding of the threats to these places.
gather evidence of the high level of support from people and organisations who share our aim of securing better protection for wild land.
use that evidence to encourage politicians to take action and to influence policies and decisions for the benefit of wild land, wild places and the people – landowners and communities - who rely on their protection and sustainable development.

Using information from the Scottish Natural Heritage to highlight how the extent of Scotland unaffected by any form of visual influence declined from 41% to 31% in just 6 years, the JMT believes "that wild land in the UK is currently facing a major threat". A study undertaken with Leeds University Wild Land Research Institute has developed maps that illustrate how much wild land remains in the UK and where it is, with the core concentrations in North West Scotland and smaller areas in Snowdonia and the Lake District immediately obvious.

The campaign has produced two petitions, one calling for the UK Government to extend National Park boundaries, or put in place new National Parks or Areas Of Outstanding Natural Beauty, to ensure improved environmental protection for the best areas of wild land and the other to urge the Scottish Government to improve protection for the best areas of wild land by introducing a new national environmental designation.

The campaign has enlisted the help of three ambassadors, including mountaineer Simon Yates, to highlight the cause, with the JMT's Head of Policy stating “We aim to use these petitions to send a clear signal to the Government that many thousands of people care passionately about wild land and want to see it given greater protection. Thousands have expressed concerns about proposed major developments in much-loved wild areas such as the Cairngorms and Snowdonia national parks, as well as the Western Isles and Shetland."