Draft minutes of meeting - Planning Committee - 14 November 2025

Cairngorms Nation­al Park Author­ity Ugh­dar­ras Pàirc Nàiseanta a’ Mhon­aidh Ruaidh Plan­ning Com­mit­tee 14 Novem­ber 2025 Page 1 of 7

Draft Minutes of the Plan­ning Com­mit­tee Meet­ing Held at Cairngorms Nation­al Park Author­ity HQ, Grant­own-on-Spey Hybrid 14 Novem­ber 2025 at 11.00am

Present in per­son Rus­sell Jones (Con­vener) Sandy Brem­ner Dr Peter Cos­grove John Kirk Lauren Mac­Cal­lum Ian McLar­en Duncan Miller Michael Wil­li­am­son Paul Gibb (Deputy Con­vener) Jack­ie Brier­ton Kenny Deans Bill Lob­ban Elean­or Mack­in­tosh Steve Mickle­wright Derek Ross

Vir­tu­al Geva Black­ett Dr Fiona McLean Dr Han­nah Grist Ann Ross Emma Bryce, Plan­ning Man­ager (Devel­op­ment Man­ager) Scott Shanks, Eco­logy Adviser

Apo­lo­gies None

In Attend­ance Gav­in Miles, Dir­ect­or of Plan­ning and Place Dav­id Berry, Head of Plan­ning and Chief Plan­ning Officer Peter Fer­guson, Harp­er MacLeod LLP Kath­er­ine Don­nach­ie, Plan­ning Officer, Devel­op­ment Man­age­ment Katie Crerar, Plan­ning Officer (Devel­op­ment Man­age­ment) Dee Straw, Plan­ning Admin­is­trat­or and Sys­tems Officer Emma Green­lees, Plan­ning Sys­tems Support

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Kar­en John­stone, Clerk to the Board

Agenda Item 1 Wel­come and Apologies

1. Rus­sell Jones, Plan­ning Com­mit­tee Con­vener wel­comed all present includ­ing mem­bers of the pub­lic. There were no apologies.

Agenda Items 2 and 3 Minutes of Pre­vi­ous Meet­ings and Mat­ters Arising

1. The minutes of the pre­vi­ous meet­ing on 29 August 2025 held at Cairngorms Nation­al Park Author­ity, Grant­own-on-Spey, were approved with no amendments.

2. Dav­id Berry, Chief Plan­ning Officer and Head of Plan­ning provided an update on action points arising from the minutes of 13 June 2025: α) At Para 31 i) – Site vis­it to River Tromie to be arranged pri­or to next

   Committee meeting. Closed – site visit took place on 10 October 2025.
   

   b) At Para 38 i) – Plan­ning Com­mit­tee Con­vener to write a let­ter to the applicant

   expressing the Committee's disappointment about the retrospective nature of
   the application. Closed – letter sent.
   

   c) At Para 60 i) – Amend­ments to Plan­ning Com­mit­tee Stand­ing Orders to be

   made prior to presentation to the Board. Closed – completed.
   

Agenda Item 4 Declar­a­tions of Interest

1. Dr Pete Cos­grove declared an interest in item 5 as he and his com­pany (Alba Eco­logy) have under­taken eco­lo­gic­al sur­veys and provided eco­lo­gic­al advice in rela­tion to this applic­a­tion and so would leave the meet­ing for the dur­a­tion of this item.

2. Plan­ning Com­mit­tee Con­vener reminded the Com­mit­tee that as per stand­ing orders, those who had not atten­ded a site vis­it for an applic­a­tion would not be able to take part in the dis­cus­sion and decision on that item. This would apply to the fol­low­ing mem­bers in rela­tion to item 5: Geva Black­ett, Jack­ie Brier­ton, Fiona McLean, Steve Mickle­wright, Ann Ross and Derek Ross

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Geva Black­ett, Jack­ie Brier­ton, Pete Cos­grove, Fiona McLean, Steve Mickle­wright, Ann Ross and Derek Ross left the meet­ing at 11.08am.

Agenda Item 5 Applic­a­tion for Detailed Plan­ning Per­mis­sion 2025/0104/DET Realign­ment of 400m of River Tromie At Land 670M NW of Dell of Kil­liehuntly Farm­house, Kin­gussie Recom­mend­a­tion: Approve sub­ject to conditions

1. Kath­er­ine Don­nach­ie, Plan­ning Officer, Devel­op­ment Man­age­ment presen­ted the paper to the committee.

2. The Com­mit­tee were invited to ask the Plan­ning Officer for clar­ity, and the fol­low­ing points were raised: α) Dis­cus­sions were had around why an eco­nom­ic impact assess­ment had not

   been done for the surrounding farms. Officers explained this is not essential
   on this type of application. Officers were satisfied that there will be expected
   positive impacts for the farmland at Dell of Killiehuntly.
   

   b) Board Mem­ber asked if officers remained of the view that the application

   complied fully with National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) and Local
   Development Plan (LDP) policies, therefore there was no reason not to
   support the application. Officers confirmed that this was the case.
   

   c) Plan­ning Con­vener ques­tioned why the Park Authority’s Agri­cul­tur­al Advisor

   did not carry out an assessment on this application. Director of Planning and
   Place explained that the Park Authority does not require agricultural impact
   assessment in cases like this where the site is not on prime quality agricultural
   land, and this is not part of the officer's job role.
   

3. The applic­ant Steve Blow addressed the com­mit­tee. Kar­en Birkby (for Applic­ant) was present to answer questions.

4. The Com­mit­tee were invited to ask for clar­ity. The fol­low­ing points were raised: α) A Board Mem­ber ques­tioned the time scale for the Dell of Kil­liehuntly side of

    the farmland to come back to agricultural use. Steve Blow explained this
    could take a few years. Karen Birkby explained that Royal Society for the
   

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b) Pro­tec­tion of Birds (RSPB) will work to bring the land back to good condition

for the tenant.
A Board Member questioned the depth of the new riverbed. Steve Blow noted
the average depth of the new river channel will be 0.5m.

c) A Board Mem­ber quer­ied if the applic­ant had a plan to stop dam­age to fish in

the area. Steve Blow explained that there will be a construction environment
management plan. It was also noted there will be regular monitoring carried
out.

d) A Board Mem­ber ques­tioned if there was a con­tin­gency plan in place if this

does not work. Steve Blow explained that the research was carried out with
Dynamic Rivers, specialists in their field, and they are confident will be
successful. The project will be closely observed over the next five years to
ensure channels and fish habitats are working. If there are any issues, RSBP
will work alongside the tenant to consider alternative options.

1. The Com­mit­tee were invited to dis­cuss the report. The fol­low­ing points were raised: α) Board Mem­bers com­men­ted that they found the site vis­it for this application

   very useful to help with the decision process.
   

   b) Board Mem­bers com­men­ted that as the applic­a­tion fully com­plies with the

   NPF4 and LDP policies and statutory aims, they would support the application
   subject to conditions.
   

   c) A Board Mem­ber raised a con­cern that without lower­ing the river­bed, this

   would not solve the issue of flooding and would result in future works having
   to be carried out.
   

   d) Board Mem­bers com­men­ted that they feel that eco­nom­ic and agricultural

   impact assessments should be part of the criteria for these types of planning
   applications.
   

2. The Com­mit­tee approved the applic­a­tion as per the officer’s recom­mend­a­tion and sub­ject to the con­di­tions detailed in the report.

3. Board Mem­bers com­men­ted that they feel that eco­nom­ic and agri­cul­tur­al impact assess­ments should be part of the cri­ter­ia for these types of plan­ning applic­a­tions. Sug­ges­tions were made to con­sider intro­du­cing these into LDP and Nation­al Park Part­ner­ship Plan (NPPP) policies in the upcom­ing months to ensure all areas are covered.

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1. Action Point arising: None.

Geva Black­ett, Jack­ie Brier­ton, Pete Cos­grove, Fiona McLean, Steve Mickle­wright, Ann Ross and Derek Ross returned to the meet­ing at 12.00pm

Agenda Item 6 Applic­a­tion for Detailed Plan­ning Per­mis­sion 2025/0090/DET Upgrade of track for forestry (in ret­ro­spect) At Land Near Loch Beun, A’Chlaidheimh, Car­rbridge Recom­mend­a­tion: Approve sub­ject to conditions

1. Katie Crerar, Plan­ning Officer, Devel­op­ment Man­age­ment presen­ted the paper to the committee.

2. The Com­mit­tee were invited to ask the Plan­ning Officer for clar­ity, and the fol­low­ing points were raised: α) There were no points raised.

3. The agent Chris­toph­er Far­quhar and Ewan Reid addressed the committee.

4. The Com­mit­tee were invited to ask for clar­ity. The fol­low­ing points were raised: α) A Board Mem­ber ques­tioned if 3.5 meters would be wide enough in terms of

   fire rescue services moving in the area if needed. Ewan Reid explained that
   the track was used extensively, and the turning point was used for helicopters
   landing during the recent wildfires, as well as being used thus far for forestry
   works, therefore they are confident 3.5 meters would be sufficient.
   

   α)

5. The Com­mit­tee were invited to dis­cuss the report. The fol­low­ing points were raised: A Board Mem­ber noted that they feel it would be bene­fi­cial to have con­sid­er­a­tions for wild­fires as part of all track applic­a­tions going for­ward, for both exist­ing and new tracks as they can be an import­ant part of fight­ing and / or pre­vent­ing the spread of fires. Officers noted the request. b) A Board Mem­ber quer­ied if there should be passing places as part of the

   track. It was explained the turning area is sufficient.
   

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1. The Com­mit­tee approved the applic­a­tion as per the officer’s recom­mend­a­tion and sub­ject to the con­di­tions detailed in the report.

2. Action Point arising: None.

Agenda Item 7 Applic­a­tion for Detailed Plan­ning Per­mis­sion 2025/0091/DET Upgrade of track for forestry (in ret­ro­spect) At Land 940M NE of Auch­er­teang, Carrbridge

1. Katie Crerar, Plan­ning Officer, Devel­op­ment Man­age­ment presen­ted the paper to the committee.

2. The Com­mit­tee were invited to ask the Plan­ning Officer for clar­ity, and the fol­low­ing points were raised: α) A Board Mem­ber ques­tioned the choice of gate, explain­ing they felt it did not

   look appealing. Planning Officer explained the gate is acceptable in landscape
   terms and Ewan Reid added that it meets the required industry standards for
   this use and has been used across the project.
   

   b) Ques­tions were raised regard­ing the mixed seeds that would be used and if

   these were native to Scotland. Ecology Advisor explained this was a Scotia
   seed mix from a Scottish company who collect seeds mainly from the
   highlands.
   

   c) A Board Mem­ber ques­tioned if the relo­ca­tion of the ped­es­tri­an gate access

   should have been included as a condition. Planning Officer explained the
   applicants have included this as part of their supporting statement, which
   they will need to adhere to, but it can also be added as a condition.
   

3. The agent Chris­toph­er Far­quhar and Ewan Reid addressed the committee.

4. The Com­mit­tee were invited to ask for clar­ity. The fol­low­ing points were raised: α) There were no comments.

5. The Com­mit­tee were invited to dis­cuss the report. The fol­low­ing points were raised:

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α) Head of Plan­ning and Chief Plan­ning Officer noted they would add the

condition requiring relocation of the gate if the Planning Committee were
minded. Board Members all agreed.

1. The Com­mit­tee approved the applic­a­tion as per the officer’s recom­mend­a­tion, sub­ject to the con­di­tions detailed in the report and an addi­tion­al con­di­tion to secure relo­ca­tion of ped­es­tri­an gate.

2. Action Point arising: i. Add the con­di­tion to secure relo­ca­tion of the ped­es­tri­an gate.

Agenda Item 8 AOCB

1. Dav­id Berry, Head of Plan­ning and Chief Plan­ning Officer gave the fol­low­ing update on Coire Mash­ie sub-sta­tion: α) Scot­tish and South­ern Elec­tri­city Net­works (SSEN) have pub­lished a report on

   the consultation they did over summer on sub-station connection options for
   the Loch Earba pumped hydro storage scheme.
   

   b) They’ve iden­ti­fied that sub-sta­tion site ​‘Option 1’ will be taken for­ward to next

   stage of development (option 1 was identified by SSEN as a preferred option
   in the earlier consultation).
   

   c) Form­al pre-app con­sulta­tion now expec­ted Spring 2026 under planning

   legislation.
   

2. The Plan­ning Com­mit­tee Con­vener raised a motion to move to a con­fid­en­tial session.

3. The pub­lic busi­ness of the meet­ing con­cluded at 12.46 pm

4. Date of next meet­ing 12 Decem­ber 2025