You couldn’t make this up if you tried…
Breaking News….on the day the Scottish Government announced it was delaying, for a second time, the implementation of muirburn licensing after aggressive lobbying from the grouse shooting industry, news is coming in of what locals have described as an ‘out-of-control muirburn’ on a grouse moor on the east side of the Cairngorms National Park that is now a rapidly spreading wildfire.
Cromar Community Council posted this on social media late this afternoon:
Police Scotland (North East) posted this:
The Scottish Fire & Rescue Service posted this:
A local blog reader has reported that this was a prescribed muirburn, started (legally) by gamekeepers on a grouse moor but that it got out of control and has now spread to the nearby Muir of Dinnet National Nature Reserve.
According to Andy Wightman’s Who Owns Scotland website, the location where the fire started appears to be the Dinnet & Kinord Estate.
Given that the out-of-control fire was first reported at 1.22pm and fire crews are still tackling it seven hours later, this is clearly a significant incident.
Slow handclap for the Scottish Government.
UPDATE 11 October 2025: “SNP caves to shooting lobby” – reactions to Scottish Government’s decision to delay muirburn licensing (again) (here)
UPDATE 13 October 2025: ‘The problem, which the Scottish Government is willfully ignoring, is that muirburn is responsible for a large number of wildfires’ (here)
UPDATE 30 October 2025: Scottish Govt fiddles while grouse moors burn (here)
Raptor Persecution UK 
Wankers all
Yahoo Mail: Search, organise, conquer
Simple. The verdict is on hold. Although unpopular, Muir burning has it’s positives. If controlled properly, it can save houses from burning down and wildlife being massacred if the heather is out of control.
“Although unpopular, Muir burning has it’s positives. If controlled properly, it can save houses from burning down and wildlife being massacred if the heather is out of control.”
Rubbish:-( Muirburn releases greenhouse gases – do you care? Causes soil erosion, leads to excess run-off and pollutes both the air and water – do you care? Destroys moorland plant, animal and insect communities – do you care?
And if you cared about ‘the heather being out of control’ you would support mowing and removing – but you don’t.
If the Scottish Government and the shooters really wanted to stop ‘houses from burning down’ then they would support the damming of all the artificial drainage systems put in by the mad shooters themselves, and re-wet the moor. Wet natural moorland does not burn.
I wonder whether there is also a loss of the mineral nutrients, K & P, but also minor trace elements, if rain falls on ash. N will have mostly gone in the smoke. Does anyone know?
Perhaps creative can provide an answer. Peer-reviewed preferred.
“I wonder whether there is also a loss of the mineral nutrients, K & P, but also minor trace elements, if rain falls on ash. N will have mostly gone in the smoke. Does anyone know?”
Natural high moorland is generally low in nutrients in acidic, water-logged, soils.
Overview…
“Burning moorland soil can lead to a temporary increase in some nutrients like potassium and phosphorus as they are released from ash, but it also causes a significant loss of nitrogen due to volatilization. It reduces organic matter, which can lead to a lower capacity for retaining essential nutrients (cations) and can increase acidity (lower pH, higher aluminum) in the soil, especially in the short term. Soil structure can also be degraded by intense or frequent burning”
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0016706113002486#:~:text=Clearly%2C%20prescribed%20burning%2C%20which%20transfers,et%20al.%2C%201973).
“However, as moorland communities only exist on very infertile soils (Edmondson et al., 2010, Gimingham, 1972, Marrs, 1993), any management that affects the distribution of nutrients within the ecosystem or their supply from soil processes must be considered important. Clearly, prescribed burning, which transfers nutrients from the stored pool in the vegetation either to the atmosphere or soil could impinge on long-term ecosystem persistence (Marrs, 1993).
“During burning, a large proportion of the nutrients within the standing vegetation may be released in more mobile forms, and may either be lost from the system in smoke, or deposited on the site as ash or char (Allen, 1964, Clay, 2009, Evans and Allen, 1971). Ash chemical composition and its water-extractable elements have been shown to change as fire severity increases in wildfires (greater total sulphur and reduced total C, N, C:N and water-extractable P; Pereira et al., 2012). Laboratory assessments of nutrient loss at different burning temperatures indicate that larger quantities of N are lost relative to other elements, although estimates are highly variable, ranging from 57% to almost a complete loss of N at temperatures above 500 °C (Allen, 1964, Evans and Allen, 1971). Lower amounts of P and cations are volatilised with a fraction of these elements being retained in ash (White et al., 1973).”
“The most interesting result was a reduction in C:N ratio with time since burning…”
Similar, miles long smoke drifting on 8th Oct from around Glen Clova towards Glen Lethnot area. And on 9th Oct from upper Glen Esk area. (The Angus Glens) Visible from 30 miles to the south.
You just couldnt write it could you! This is a real head shaker. You give the grouse exterminator industry an inch and theyll take a mile as history shows. When will the Scottish government stand up to these estates and bring some control over them?!
It beats me how anybody with any modicum of compassion or ethics in them, can possibly believe that killing birds for fun or profit is morally acceptable anyway. It disappoints me that ethically right and wrong is never even a consideration when legislation is drawn up. Its jobs, economics and development potential that counts, not suffering, pain, and declining wildlife habitat. Its as if the legislators would find it too embarrassing or “soft” to consider the victims and ethics of this “execution pastime”.
Mental smoke train (so long, concentrated + horizontal) They could / should at least be made to pay compensation to the fire service considering xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx. It said the fire service say they have 6 appliances in attendance (I presume that means 6 fire engines) I doubt many other fires require that amount of resources (other than wild fires) – [Ed: apparently] deliberately set, xxxxx xxxxx, business purpose, vast funds – should be made to pay compensation. Also, it’s considered endangering life on the fire fighter’s behalf and that adds to xxxxx xxxxx. Not fair / at all right for the Nature reserve. Wonder if the lobbyists will try to defend this or pretend it didn’t happen.
p.s I got lost off in my rant and forgot to say when I mentioned the Nature Reserve, that the Nature Reserve should also be given the opportunity to claim compensation based on the alleged circumstances of the fire as someone else has suggested on the next post.
Not that my comment made as much sense anymore, I would have understood more + been fine with it if none of it was put up.
That’s by no means said as / meant as a go at the Editor!
I know she has her reasons.
Thanks Sog. I should have said “I got lost off in my ‘futile + pointless’ rant,” and “I know she has her ‘valid’ reasons” ‘to comply with, I appreciate I said things that were wrong to say’
Sorry for too often taking your / people’s time up with late corrections.
Not my area, but ‘appliances’ could mean regular fire engines plus water tankers, perhaps, and might include a rescue ladder in urban fires? I think it is their normal term.
It seems quite appropriate thati wrote to the Fire Service yesterday requesting information regarding their consultation with the Scottish Government on muirburn. I look forward to their reply. If indeed there were fires which were deemed out of control, I’d be surprised if they objected to the legislation.
There have been signs all over the place in the area including official electronic notices on the variable message sign in Dinnet and several posted notices at the Muir of Dinnet National Nature Reserve for several months, all begging the public not to light barbecues or have campfires because of the very high risk of wildfire. If it was muirburn, I would be very interested to learn about the thought processes behind instigating such land management practices under these conditions.
This isn’t the first time that fires have got out of control on Culblean hill.
All uncaring bafoons whichever government your referring to.
Government is now being run almost entirely by wealthy lobby groups bullying politicians who seem to have abandoned the electorate
Did I read about the Nat Park seeking to ban fires & barbecues during the summer?
“Did I read about the Nat Park seeking to ban fires & barbecues during the summer?”
Why the ban on camp fires in the Cairngorms National Park maybe political rather than sustainable….. – parkswatchscotland
“My colleague Euan Stevenson and I analysed the most recent satellite-derived data from NatureScot (see here) to explore this question. We found that the main cause of wildfire in the CNP is not actually campers, but sporting estates. Only 9% of wildfire burns were likely caused by campers, whereas 71% were most likely caused by ‘muirburn gone wrong’.”
Do they determine the ‘likely’ origin of the fires by the area they’re in + patterns of previous muirburns?
“Do they determine the ‘likely’ origin of the fires by the area they’re in + patterns of previous muirburns?”
I do not think so. There is an official NatureScot map of all wildfires – though some may be missed – which (as far as I can tell) contain codes on the source (cause?) of the fire supplied by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (presumably after an investigation?).
It all looks pretty impressive and conscientious.
I tried downloading the map to follow the data to uncover what the codes meant for myself, in order to confirm what the authors published. But mapping is a bit of an art, and I failed in the short time I spent…
My conclusion was that the authors were aggregating official SFRS/NatureScot data on the causes, but I cannot say that I independently confirmed it myself.
Sorry to have troubled you with a question – thanks for your reply. (you’re very thorough, evidence based + helpful)
When it mentioned satellite data I was led off the path and wrongly thought that meant satellite imagery of burn patches sorry, (even after clicking on the link) leading me to think fire investigations / evidence of campfires / discarded barbecues might not come into it.
I watched a programme on the moors burning in Scotland in July presenter showed skeletons of adders ground nesting fledglings leverets just stayed put don’t run and burnt to death how can anyone pay money to do this. Can’t believe the wealthy wankers get away with it cruelty on a massive scale devastation by pollution the Scottish government needs to act and fast and as you mentioned David ETHICS these morons don’t know the meaning of ETHICS they are too thick to understand they are brainwashed heartless people who care more about money and status than the environment or wildlife they just see pound signs .
Appropriate timing for the SNP Conference. Will the Press push John Swinney et al for comments? I agree with all the arguments above to implement the law NOW.
The local authorities should start sending the costs of the fire brigade and police having to attend and sort this ‘out-of-control muirburn’ on a grouse moor on the east side of the Cairngorms National Park that is now a rapidly spreading wildfire. Why should they risk their lives for these total buffoons to do this sort of thing with no controls in place time and time again so it would seem.No doubt the cost wouldn’t be much and easily affordable for these estates, but it maybe might make them think and be far more careful next time if it happens many times. Especially if the costs were doubled for the second time, trebled for the third etc.They seem to be able to do this with total impunity when it gets out of hand