Crofting

Survival of crofters versus geese

By Patrick Krause, Chief Executive, Scottish Crofting Federation

At a recent Cross Party Group on Crofting (CPGoC) there was passionate discussion on the destruction caused by greylag geese on the islands and NatureScot’s bewildering decision to cease funding the very successful greylag ‘adaptive management’ schemes.

Scotland’s National Islands Plan, published in 2019, was developed following the introduction of the Islands (Scotland) Act 2018 and sets out a series of objectives for improving outcomes for island communities across Scotland. The Plan commits the Scottish Government to address population decline so completely withdrawing funding the control on greylag geese, which are threatening the existence of crofting communities on the islands, is alarming, to say the least.

NatureScot was asked whether they had undertaken an Island Communities Impact Assessment (ICIA) under the Island Act 2018 (the Act) to this change in greylag goose policy and, if not, why it had not done so. At the meeting, NatureScot were able to confirm that they had not undertaken an ICIA on current goose policy, and followed up with a written statement saying, “We are of the view that neither the introduction nor the closure of the demonstration projects had an effect on an island community which is significantly different from its effect on other communities.”

November was dominated by COP26 at which much deliberation was given to the predicament we find ourselves in regarding the damage we have done, and are doing, to the biosphere that supports us. There were apparently some agreements reached on actions that may help, but I was left with the feeling that it amounts to not nearly enough.

A comment at the CPGoC meeting was “Crofting agriculture on the Uists machair is unique and extremely environmentally friendly and enhances biodiversity – many species benefit from the work of the crofters. But the battle with geese is being lost – geese increase as funding diminishes. The funding for the adaptive management scheme was essential – if there is no funding the geese will take over. What does NatureScot want? Crofters and cattle and the environmental benefits or do they want geese?” instances is a modern form of traditional farming practices, with rotational cropping incorporating grass breaks and a harmonic balance with nature, supports a conventional and a holistic approach to delivering a healthy planet and a healthy food system, and there are many examples of where sheep play a central role.

A call to action for sheep event organisers

Sheep event organisers are being encouraged to sign up and deliver CPD points to members of the Register of Sheep Advisers (RoSA), a first of its kind register for the industry.

Phil Stocker, NSA chief executive, recognises the importance of the industry getting behind the initiative and highlights the reasoning behind encouraging CPD event organisers to sign up to deliver RoSA points.

“We want to offer training providers the opportunity to promote their courses, events and training opportunities through the register. This will not only support event organisers but also provide advisers with the optimum training and up to date knowledge.”

Event organisers can complete a simple application process, which can be accessed via the RoSA website, to register themselves as a RoSA recognised event organiser.

After a recent survey indicated that the biggest drawback for event organisers was not knowing whether their event was appropriate to offer CPD points, Mr Hopkinson explains which events are eligible for being recognised with RoSA.

“As long as the event contains technical content that will enable sheep advisers to provide better