Scottish Estates Break Records in Wildlife Conservation

Three Scottish estates were awarded the Wildlife Estates Scotland (WES) accreditation on 4 July at the GWCT Scottish Game Fair. The award was presented by Jim FAIRLIE, Scottish Government Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity and Member of the Scottish Parliament.

Together, the estates cover over 120,000 acres and were recognised for their exceptional commitment to wildlife management and conservation – achieving the highest scores ever recorded in the history of the WE accreditation.

The accreditations were awarded to: Finzean Estate in Aberdeenshire, Glen Creran Estate in Argyll and Reay Forest Estate in Sutherland. WES is the Scottish version of the European Wildlife Estates initiative. It is endorsed by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Environment. Agriculture Minister Jim FAIRLIE commented: “This awards ceremony is one of my favourite events at the Game Fair and this year’s recipients are continuing to carry the baton for excellent land management practices. Reay Forest, Glen Creran and Finzean estates all show how incorporating nature into your land management and making an asset of the biodiversity on your doorstep can offer huge benefits to both the estates and to Scotland’s environment. I want to commend all three for their hard work and wish them all the best for the future.”

Miles MONTGOMERIE, chair of Wildlife Estates Scotland, said: “I congratulate these estates on their extraordinary achievement. It is fitting that they should be publicly recognised today, through Wildlife Estates Scotland.”… “WES-accredited estates have made a commitment, often at significant cost, to protect and improve habitats, ecosystems and wildlife, for present and future generations to enjoy.”
… “Achieving WES accreditation is a rigorous process, requiring independent evaluation of conservation work undertaken for the benefit of the natural environment. These three estates are an inspiration to other rural businesses, and indeed to all of us.” Scotland is currently in second place in the league table of Wildlife Estates land in Europe, with only Spain ahead.

Reay Forest Estate in Sutherland has received the highest score achieved by any organisation in Europe accredited by Wildlife Estates, receiving an overall rating of 91.75%. As part of its assessment, the Reay Forest Estate is also the first organisation in the UK to receive a gold accreditation.
Reay Forest is a traditional rural estate, famed for its deer, trout and salmon, and one of the three rural estates in the Grosvenor Estates’ portfolio. It is considered one of Europe’s last remaining wildlands. A series of science-led surveys have been carried out including using lasers to create 3D models of the land that are accurate to 5cm, soil organic carbon sampling – measuring the soil’s ability to store carbon and water – as well as an innovative pilot investigating whether environmental DNA in soils can be used as an early indicator of ecological biodiversity and therefore soil health. Working in partnership with the Atlantic Salmon Trust (AST), Grosvenor’s Reay Forest Estate is also delivering one of the UK’s most extensive conservation projects with the goal of restoring critically endangered wild Atlantic salmon populations. It is hoped the project will restore 118km² of the landscape – an area the size of urban Manchester – with up to a million trees being planted, enhancingbiodiversity and benefitting the whole ecosystem.

Ben MARDALL, Estate Manager, Grosvenor’s Reay Forest Estate said: “Everything we do at Reay Forest is focused on our long-term commitment to delivering a lasting economic, social and environmental benefit in our communities and safeguarding the estate’s unique and sensitive environmental habitats. While we’ve always believed that this was the right approach, it’s wonderful to have all of our people’s hard work independently endorsed by Wildlife Estates. Everyone at Grosvenor is absolutely delighted to receive both the gold award and to have been awarded the highest score of any accredited estate in Europe.” Assessors described Reay Forest as “one of the leading examples in Scotland when it comes to species and habitat monitoring, enhancing biodiversity and delivering on landscape-scale projects”.