People power saves wildlife on our doorsteps

A SHORT distance from the Kessock Bridge, with its dramatic spans crossing the Moray Firth, lies Merkinch, Scotland's 50th and newest local nature reserve (LNR). The sanctuary, which stretches along the foreshore from the mouth of the Caledonian Canal around to the old pier at South Kessock, includes areas of salt and fresh water marshes, with reed beds, bog, scrub and wooded embankments.

A habitat survey carried out by the Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT) reported that there were "numerous areas of high wildlife value" and that the area had a "very unusual habitat combination".

LNRs hold a special place in the patchwork of protected areas across the UK. Whereas governments and their agencies make the grandiose designation of national nature reserves and national parks, the creation of LNRs is community-led.

Under the same legislation that created the UK's first national parks in the post-war years, Scotland's local councils have the power to designate areas within their boundaries as LNRs, in consultation with Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), the Scottish Government's countryside agency.

Merkinch LNR, which lies within the city of Inverness and covers 54.7 hectares, is the only such reserve in the Highlands. Muchlochy Bay, on the Black Isle, was designated as an LNR in 1975 but its status was removed a decade later, after disputes about public access. The bay remains a popular spot for bird-watchers.

The only other LNR in Scotland to have had its designation altered was Gladhouse Reservoir in Midlothian, which was an LNR between 1979 and 1996.

Debbie Maguire, from Greenspace Inverness, an informal partnership that brings together a diverse group of government agencies to improve green spaces in the Highland city, thinks having an LNR will be a boost for both Inverness and the Merkinch area.

"It's quite a deprived area, and so to have this fantastic natural asset right on their doorstep is going to be great," she explained. "It's going to be used for education: the Highland Council rangers are going to host events down there and take local schoolchildren to do species searches and pond dipping. It's going to be a great resource, not only because people will know that it's a protected area and that there won't be any housing on it, but also for the education value.

"It's quite a marshy area," she added. "A lot of the site is below the low-water mark. At the moment, the site has some quite good footpaths and a nice boardwalk that was installed a few years ago.

"It's quite well-used by local people, either walking their dogs or taking a stroll along the shore, and it's easily accessible. It's a varied site and quite a big site to be found on the edge of a city."

She added: "This is the first local nature reserve designation that we've been involved with and it's been a relatively easy process. It's also been relatively quick: from start to finish, it's taken about ten months.

"I think that's to do with the partnership work. I would encourage other local authorities and other local community groups to look into LNRs further and to really go for it. It may seem like a daunting prospect for a community group, but if they get the relevant partners on board, then I think it's a great project for them."

Inverness isn't the only urban area interested in LNRs. Falkirk Council has consulted SNH about designating Bonnyfield Nature Park - a former quarry - as an LNR, which would be the first such area within the council's boundaries.

As with the Merkinch foreshore, it has been local volunteers who have cared for the nature park, in partnership with their local council, and who are spearheading the campaign to have the site designated as an LNR.

"It sounds like a clich, but local nature reserves are good places for people and nature," said Ian Angus, SNH's policy and advice manager.

"They protect areas of special natural interest and give people an opportunity to enjoy and learn about the natural world. They don't need to be sites of special scientific interest; the emphasis is on that mix of people and nature. Essentially, LNRs are about creating special places close to where people live and work."

Angus added: "SNH supports a network of LNR managers and community groups that are interested in LNRs, either existing or potential reserves. We hold regular meetings to exchange experience and we publish an electronic newsletter. We have also produced guidance on the management on LNRs.

"We're very keen to involve local communities in the management of LNRs - it's a great way for them to take ownership of a site and be proud of it. One idea being promoted is that it would be useful to have more consistent information about LNRs available across the UK - detailing where they are, why they were designated and who to contact for more information. That could really raise their profile."

He said the designation of LNRs could help local councils to meet their bio-diversity and green space plans and also act as a resource for public health, encouraging people to walk around sites and enjoy the therapeutic benefits that nature can bring.

Alan Anderson, the conservation operations manager at the SWT, which cares for the Cullaloe reservoir and Montrose basin LNRs as part of its wildlife reserves, said: "Considering the legislation to designate LNRs has been around for 60 years, Scotland has far too few of them; a fifth of local authorities have failed to designate any LNRs to date.

"Several of the LNRs were originally identified by the SWT through its wildlife sites survey programme - we'd be happy to work with local authorities to identify more potential local nature reserves.

"Local nature reserves are really important locations for protecting wild plants and animals, particularly around are towns; not only that, but the creation of an LNR is the clearest way a local authority can demonstrate its commitment to nature conservation."

For more information about Scotland's local nature reserves, visit www.snh.gov.uk/about/lnr/default.asp

LOCAL NATURE RESERVES BY NUMBERS

1952

The year in which the UK's first local nature reserve was designated, at Aberlady Bay, in East Lothian

The total number of local nature reserves in Scotland

The total number of local nature reserves in Wales

1,366

The total number of local nature reserves in England

9,881

The number of hectares in Scotland that are contained within LNRs

0.12%

The area of Scotland's landmass covered by LNRs

2844.7

The number of hectares covered by Wigtown Bay, Scotland's largest local nature reserve

1.45

The number of hectares covered by Meadows Yard, in Edinburgh, Scotland's smallest LNR

The number of local nature reserves in Fife, the most in any unitary authority area in Scotland

The number of Scottish local authorities with no local nature reserves within their boundaries

The section of the 1949 Act that allows councils to designate local nature reserves

Sources: SNH, RERAD, CCW