Interview with Alan Watson

Founder of Trees for Life

Unsustainable lifestyles are a theme within this project. Of any response to my question of the biggest ecological problem within Scotland this has been the most common. Alan Watson of Trees for Life, which works to restore the Caledonian Forest, also identified unsustainable lifestyles as the biggest ecological problem. If everyone used the same resources as a person from Scotland we would need three planets. Since natural resources are finite our Earth cannot support unlimited growth. He spoke about the problems of cheap energy, new developments, centralized facilities instead of localized ones, depleted forests, wildlife extinction, and fish stocks depleted.

The reason for our unsustainable lifestyles he suggests is that we are divorced from the natural world and have lost touch with natural cycles. In nature there is no such thing as unlimited growth except in the case of cancer. Our unsustainable lifestyles in Scotland are negatively affecting the natural world in Scotland and also in the rest of the world, while at the same time denying the people from the South.

In terms of solutions he said they must start with the individual. What is needed is a 90% resource reduction and he said most people tinker at the edges by buying a hybrid car or composting but what is needed is major change within every aspect of ones life. Alan used his own choices as an example for the type of things normal people can do to make a difference. He has been vegan for thirty years and he spoke about the importance of buying organic local food. The UN has said that the raising of animals for livestock generates more carbon emissions than all of the transport services in the World (50). The University of Surrey conducted a study showing that the meat and dairy industries within the UK create 8% of UK carbon emissions while the airline industry creates only 2.5% (50). Researchers from the University of Chicago have calculated that an average meat-eater emits 1.5 tonnes more CO2 per year than a vegan, because it takes, for example, 7kg of feed to produce 1kg of beef. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the runoff from factory farms pollutes waterways more than all other industrial sources combined. In the U.S 70 percent of all grains, 80 percent of all agricultural land, half of all water resources, and one-third of all fossil fuels are used to raise animals for food (51).

Interview with Justin Prigmore

Cairngorms Biodiversity Officer

Justin Prigmore (52), Biodiversity Officer at the Cairngorm National Park said that he thinks the biggest ecological problems in Scotland today are human pressure and habitat fragmentation. Humankind has had a strong influence on shaping the land in Scotland for hundreds of years. Only one percent of the Caledonian forest still remains in remote glens, islands, steep cliffs or the edges of lochs. Time, the Iron Age, the Highland clearances and the building of empire have taken their toll. This loss of forest dramatically reduces the ability of species and ecological systems to function. For example the Twinflower, which grows in the Caledonian Forest is now endangered because the forest is so fragmented that there is not enough diversity within the gene pool. He also talked about the problem of conflicting land use. Deer and sheep eat any seedlings that grow. On grouse mores the Hen Harrier has been persecuted because it eats the grouse. Prigmore suggested that more cooperation is needed between those working the land and conservation organizations.

Prigmore also spoke about global warming. He thinks that it is important to be prepared for the potential negative consequences. Instead of spending huge sums on disaster relief, we would be better off looking at the risk areas and working to address those with natural, more cost effective systems now. For example, with global warming there is the increased threat of natural disasters such as heavy storms, which can lead to floods. Many of the rivers in Scotland are deforested around their source in the mountains. If we were to plant trees around the rivers, the roots would help to hold the water in the land, so that flooding did not occur downstream. Wetlands and bogs also help to prevent flooding and are under appreciated. Since the land is unusable for grazing and farming, bogs are often drained and destroyed. In reality they serve a valuable purpose and many think of these lush wet places as the kidneys of the Earth. The plants and microorganisms that live in bogs and wetlands clean and supply water to rivers and lochs. Bogs also store carbon in the form of peat. If drained, the carbon, which has been stored for thousands of years, is released into the atmosphere contributing to global warming. The destruction of wetlands and bogs leads to greater pollution, risk or flooding and loss of species.

Other images that Prigmore spoke about are plantation forests both growing and clear cut and new housing developments on Greenfield sites.