Highland summit to tackle devastating impact of wildfires

More than 200 wildfires have broken out across Scotland this year

A multi-agency meeting will be held in the Highlands later to look at the devastating impact of recent wildfires in Scotland.

It follows a series of blazes at Carrbridge and Dava in the Cairngorms national park, which landowners described as the biggest in living memory.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) said this year had presented an "unprecedented" wildfire risk, with more than 200 incidents across the country.

The summit in Grantown, hosted by the Scottish government, will consider ways to improve resilience and prevent future outbreaks.

It will be attended by representatives from the SFRS, NatureScotland, Scottish Land and Estates and other land management and environmental groups.

The blaze at Dava caused devastation to the landscape and wildlife

Scotland's Agriculture Minister Jim Fairlie and Community Safety Minister Siobhian Brown are joint chairs of the summit.

Fairlie said: "It took an astonishing effort across so many sites to tackle the wildfires we saw this year, and we are grateful to all those who helped.

"This is a chance for us to look at what worked, and what lessons we need to learn from what happened."

Brown said that, in the aftermath of this summer's blazes, ministers had "engaged closely" with SFRS, local communities and other groups.

She added: "We continue to support the full implementation of the SFRS wildfire strategy, which will see the continued roll-out of new equipment, vehicles and personal protective equipment."

Large areas of the Highlands were affected by the summer's wildfires

The devastating Highland fires burned across more than 11,000 hectares (27,000 acres) at Carrbridge and Dava in late June and early July.

Experts believe that thousands of animals and other wildlife were killed in the flames - including curlew, grouse chicks and hares.

There were reports of smoke from the Carrbridge blaze drifting for 40 miles (64km) across the Moray Firth.

What causes wildfires?

Water was used to try to douse the fires in the summer

• The SFRS classifies wildfires as large and uncontrolled outdoor fires exceeding 1,000 sq m of burned area.

• Wildfires are unplanned and unpredictable. They happen in areas with combustible vegetation that causes flames to spread rapidly.

• Human activity is often to blame - with fires started by barbecues, glass bottles magnifying sunlight on dry vegetation, or discarded cigarettes.

• One of the reasons fires continue to burn on moorland is because of peaty soil which fuels the flames.

In parts of the Highland landscape the fires penetrated deep, burning away peat that would have formed thousands of years ago.

Colin McClean, land manager of the Cairngorms National Park Authority, said it would have a long-lasting impact on the natural environment.

He said the park was introducing "clear, practical measures" to reduce wildfire risk and said the summit was an opportunity for "critical conversations" on mitigation and management.

The SFRS said it would continue to work closely with "partners, landowners and communities in both our response and, importantly, to help prevent wildfires".

SFRS assistant chief officer Jon Henderson added: "This year Scotland has faced an unprecedented scale of wildfire risk.

"Wildfires can employ a significant amount of our resources, they also have the potential to burn for days and devastate vast areas of land and wildlife."

He said the SFRS welcomed the opportunity to participate in the summit.