How the Rewilding Pathway can support ‘repeopling’ Scottish areas

It would allow Scotland to become the world’s first rewilding nation.

The Rewilding Nation Pathway aims to restore nature across 30% of Scottish lands and seas in one of the most nature-depleted countries on earth.

More than 20 organisations have presented their Rewilding Nation Pathway to the acting Minister for Climate Action, Alasdair Allan MSP, at a reception on December 3.

READ MORE: Plan for Scotland to become first ‘rewilding nation’ presented to ministers

Allan has recognised that Scotland has not yet addressed biodiversity loss on a large enough scale.

“Addressing the nature crisis requires a whole government and a whole society approach – working together to achieve a nature-positive Scotland by 2030,” said Allan.

Dr Karen Blackport, Scottish Rewilding Alliance co-convener and chief executive of Bright Green Nature said: “Declaring Scotland the world’s first Rewilding Nation would be a powerful statement of intent that we want to be a world leader in nature restoration. Our pathway sets out a route offering the Scottish Government the opportunity to show global leadership.”

What does the Rewilding Nation Pathway say?

THE pathway outlines a simple plan with seven key points to help rewild Scotland. First, it suggests creating a framework within the Scottish Government to support rewilding through new laws and funding.

Then, it calls for expanding rewilding efforts across the country, helping restore ecosystems for local communities.

The plan also focuses on making sure policy, legislation and public bodies encourage wildlife coexistence and create funding for the return of native species.

It aims to reduce pressure and damage to ecosystems on land and calls for protecting and restoring 30% of Scotland’s waters to support natural recovery.

The pathway also includes restoring the economy by making environmental efforts part of Scotland’s economic strategy, while strengthening the connection between people and nature.

‘Repeopling’ the Highlands

MANY organisations welcomed this initiative, viewing it as a way to boost the population in rural parts of Scotland and attract people with job opportunities and improved quality of life.

In mid-2022, the population of the Highlands was 235,710 with a population density of nine people per square kilometre, according to OpenData Stirling.

In comparison, Glasgow City had a population of 622,820 in 2022, with a much higher population density of 3567 people per square kilometre.

“Communities are still suffering from the impact of historic wrongs like the Clearances, and rebalancing our population between west and east, north and south, and urban and rural, must also be a priority alongside any “rewilding” hopes,” said SNP MSP for Highlands and Islands Emma Roddick.

“We can’t forget that many of the places that often come to mind when folk in the Central Belt talk about “rewilding” are not usually considered “wild” by those who live in them, may not always have been as quiet as they now are, and must be approached sensitively.”

The Highlands could benefit from the Rewilding Pathway (Image: Ali Elliott on Unsplash)The Pebble Trust, a charity based in the Highlands that supports action for a sustainable, fair and low-carbon society, strongly supports the pathway.

“There are many communities across the Highlands and Islands who are working hard to help make this happen because they see how it will help improve their quality of life and scope for sustainable income. This plan, if implemented, would provide a tremendous boost to their efforts,” a spokesperson for the Pebble Trust said.

The rewilding pathway is seen as a way to benefit not only wildlife but also Scotland’s community by creating jobs, improving health and enriching communities.

 “Rewilding across the Highlands, and across Scotland more widely, is showing how – by working with nature not against it – our local communities and nature can thrive together,” said Laurelin Cummins-Fraser, director of the Dundreggan Rewilding Centre near Inverness.

“In the Highlands, a Rewilding Nation would support community wealth-building and repeopling, and go hand-in-hand with sustainable, nature-led industries like farming, fishing and forestry.”

What does rewilding Scotland imply?

THE Scottish Rewilding Alliance has calculated that only 2% of Scotland is rewilding, with 150 projects in place.

Rewilding would help Scotland tackle the climate emergency and create opportunities for local communities for health, jobs, food production and repeopling.

It would also help improve the quality of the air and water, stated the Alliance.

The Rewilding Nation Pathway aims to restore 30% of Scotland’s seas and lands by protecting landscapes and seascapes, creating wild zones around rivers and coastlines, doubling native woodland cover, restoring peatlands at a fast pace, and restricting dredging and bottom trawling in Marine Protected Areas.

These targets would ensure habitat restoration and would allow an increase in species abundance and diversity.

The Government would lead efforts to expand beaver populations and initiate a managed lynx reintroduction.

Lynx could be reintroduced in Scotland (Image: Jon Glittenberg/Wikipedia Creative Commons)

Rewilding and farming

SCOTLAND is currently ranked in the bottom 25% of countries worldwide for the states of its nature, stated the Scottish Rewilding Alliance.

Intensive agriculture and climate change are the main drivers of biodiversity loss, along with other threats such as non-native forestry, pollution, and invasive species.

Denise Walton, Scotland chair at the Nature-Friendly Farming Network (NFFN), said: “Ecological degradation and climate change are already threatening our ability to produce food and it’s vital we take steps to reverse this, urgently.”

The NFFN calls for “the adoption of more environmentally friendly practices” in the farming community that would help Scottish wildlife and biodiversity.

“We need to increase tree cover, which can be achieved through measures like agroforestry and restoring or creating hedgerows, both of which benefit biodiversity and farm businesses.”

Walton wishes farmland and farmers to be at “the heart of any vision for the future of Scotland’s landscape”. 

READ MORE: Scottish farmers ditch heavy tractors in bid to tackle flooding

Scotland’s diverse habitats such as peatland, woodland or wetlands hold a crucial role in the well-being of nature.

Cummins-Fraser from the Dundreggan Rewilding Centre said that Scotland has a real potential across the Highlands to “restore wetlands, native woodlands, peatlands and other important wild habitats, while our farmers can also benefit from restoring nature on land that is less productive for food”

The Rewilding Scottish Alliance stated that this year, thousands of people have signed the Rewilding Nation Charter and called on the Government to commit to urgent action. According to the Alliance, a poll has shown that 80% of Scots believe the Scottish Government should implement policies to support rewilding.

The Scottish Rewilding Alliance is calling on people to sign the Rewilding Nature Charter, which can be found HERE.