A National Park for Fife

Fife Liberal Democrat Councillor for East Neuk and Landward Bill Porteous has the backing of the Scottish National Parks Strategy Project, for the East Neuk of Fife to be part of a new National Park. For more on this story, see The Courier article titled "Should East Neuk of Fife be Scotland’s third national park". The Scottish National Parks Strategy Project is campaigning for more national parks across Scotland and Bill Porteous wants to have a conversation with the residents of Fife.

The Scottish Government provides national funding to sustain the communities in and around National Parks, encouraging jobs which support and look after these special places and their ways of life for future generations. The Parks bring visitors to remote areas, benefit tourism and other land-use interests, and generate new commercial and marketing opportunities

Scotland’s landscapes rank amongst the best in the world in their richness, quality and diversity. Scotland has mountains, rivers and lochs, forests and stunning coastlines and islands, all rich in wildlife and history.

Scotland’s landscapes enhance quality of life, mental health and well-being. They give us inspiration, enjoyment and motivation to walk and cycle. They provide great opportunities for outdoor recreation, including walking, cycling, sailing and mountaineering.

Scotland’s scenery has provided important historical economic benefits through tourism. Although the world has over 3,500 National Parks (including for example 60 in Canada, 29 in Norway and 14 in New Zealand), Scotland has only two, both quite recent – the Cairngorms which stretches from Aviemore to Braemar and Loch Lomond and the Trossachs. Both these parks have campaigned for National Parks for over 60 years, and all the opposition parties in the Scottish Parliament currently support more National Parks.

The Evening Express published an article in the sidelines on 25 May 2021 titled “How to get away from it all? Take a sea safari”. The article discusses how exploring your own town local to where you live can be enriching. The article mentions the prospect of seeing seals, dolphins and sea birds with the Stonehaven Sea Safari and also “kittiwakes nesting on the pudding stone cliffs”. Birds are a common sight in Scotland, but when I see them in Aberdeenshire, I cannot identify them. When I get near, they fly away. Catching sea birds to eat is difficult, but this is how residents of Scotland’s furthest flung island St Kilda survived when the island was inhabitated. Residents in St Kilda survived without the help of the UK or Scottish government. My mother today 25 May drove along the dual-carriageway into Aberdeen. She was so focussed on driving she did not notice the cows in the countryside, which surrounds Aberdeen. Westhill on the outskirks of the City of Aberdeen is surrounded in several farms.

St Monans Holiday Park is situated between Fife's small villages St Monans and Pittenweem on Scotland's east coast and Fife's coastal path on the edge of St Monans, which is famous for its windmill which powered a salt-panning industry. The photo below shows the caravan park from a distance in a stunning location overlooking the sea and the Isle of May which is home to a seal colony. The Fife coastal path connects Dundee to Edinburgh.

Nestled behind a wide expanse of dunes and a sweeping sandy beach, there is Elie Holiday Park at Shell Bay. Elie has a large beach and harbour with boats to enable families to have fun in the sea.