The pinewood orchid Creeping Lady's-tresses Goodyera repens in flower on the site threatened by proposals for 117 houses, Carrbridge.


The pinewood orchid Creeping Lady's-tresses Goodyera repens in flower on the site threatened by proposals for 117 houses, Carrbridge. August 2007
The developer has stated of this orchid in a report submitted to the CNPA in September 2007 "no signs of presence have been recorded and no previous records are available". However the Planning Papers for the March 2007 CNPA planning meeeting included a letter from BSCG to the CNPA (written in August 2006) that documented the presence of this orchid on the development site. During October 2007 BSCG is further documenting the presence of Creeping Lady's-tresses on the currently proposed development site. Photo leaves of Creeping Lady's-tresses at the threatened site at Carrbridge ( October 2007) The following letter from the convener of BSCG referring to inadequate surveys for developer Tulloch at Carrbrdge was published in the Strathspey and Badenoch Herald on 10 October 2007 under the title Red squirrels enhance our Lives. The transect walked by BSCG members across part of the site was only 350m in length. Sir, The Badenoch and Strathspey Conservation Group has long opposed excessive inappropriate housing in sensitive sites including native woodland and long established flower rich meadows. BSCG has strongly criticised the standards of the developer’s environmental surveys undertaken in connection with the 117- house proposal at Carrbridge (see Strathy March 14 2007, Letter March 28 2007). The Reporter’s outline planning conditions stipulate that where any conflict emerges the outcome of the survey relating to natural heritage interests "shall override all other detailed considerations". We have now found that reports associated with a new revised submission by developer Tulloch are again unacceptably flawed. We therefore continue to consider that the CNPA officials would be in breach of the biodiversity duty set out in the Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004 if they were to accept the latest demonstrably flawed environmental assessments provided by Tulloch. One simple illustration of how we find one of the new Tulloch reports flawed relates to red squirrels. This is one of our most endangered mammals and the National Park provides one of the most important strongholds for this species in the UK. Accordingly we should all be taking red squirrel conservation seriously. To mark the end of National Red Squirrel Week, last Sunday (7 October) a few members of BSCG checked part of the pinewood proposed for housing for squirrel nests (dreys). We found nine squirrel dreys all of which had fresh feeding signs beneath them. By contrast the developer undertook two surveys of squirrel dreys across the entire site, finding on the first no squirrel dreys and on the second only one. BSCG considers it should be unacceptable for flawed environmental surveys to be treated as valid by planning authorities, especially in a National Park Photo (copyright BSCG) red squirrel in woodland threatened by the Tulloch development at Carrbridge (July 2007)