World Heritage

In 2020 The Flow Country took an enormous step towards becoming the world’s first peatland world heritage site by passing stage one of the nomination process!

In late 2019, The Peatlands Partnership submitted a technical evaluation of The Flow Country to an expert panel assembled by the UK Government. After a nervous few months waiting, we were delighted when the panel recommended that The Flow Country proceed to the next stage of the world heritage site process.

There is a lot of work ahead of us, but if The Flow Country is successful it will join the likes of The Grand Canyon and The Great Barrier Reef on a very exclusive list of world-renowned natural sites.

We firmly believe that The Flow Country belongs on the world heritage site list and that securing this highest of accolades could bring many benefits to local communities and to peatlands worldwide.

Draft proposed Flow Country World Heritage Site Boundary for Early Consultation­­

Draft Flow Country WH Boundary 28 2 23

Why does the Flow Country deserve World Heritage status?

The proposed Flow Country World Heritage Site straddles Caithness and Sutherland, lying at the heart of one of the largest areas of blanket bog anywhere in the world. This globally rare habitat includes a wide range of peatland vegetation, bog pools and a selection of rare and endangered bird and insect species.

It is the quality and extent of the blanket bog habitat that gives The Flow Country its outstanding universal value and could justify its place on the world heritage site list. In making this argument to UNESCO, we are saying that The Flow Country is the best example of this type of habitat anywhere in the world.

Golden Plover 16 9 new dimensions11

In addition to being a stronghold for a globally-rare type of peatland, The Flow Country also offers vital local ecosystem services. As you may have read elsewhere on this website, The Flow Country stores a remarkable amount of carbon and will continue to do so if kept in healthy condition. The peatlands also act as a natural filtration system for the rivers and streams that run off and through it, providing cleaner waters for aquatic wildlife and people. The Flow Country is also a place of work and leisure for locals and visitors to the far north.

What could a Flow Country World Heritage Site bring to Caithness and Sutherland?

A recurrent theme in world heritage is that you receive those benefits which you prepare for. Some world heritage sites take advantage of the prestige of the accolade to attract heritage or eco tourists to stay and spend in the region for longer, while other sites might be more interested in the educational or social benefits.

We were interested to find out what benefits the people of Caithness and Sutherland wanted to see from a Flow Country World Heritage Site and embarked on a wide-reaching community consultation from 2018-2019. Through a combination of all-day drop-in sessions, community council meetings, landowner visits, local and national media coverage and word of mouth we were delighted to receive a high level of support for the world heritage site project.

From our local engagement activities, the most common hopes for the region were an increase in sustainable tourism, funding for community projects, environmental protection, the reversal of social issues such as depopulation and lack of job opportunities. The most commonly cited concerns were over-tourism and restrictions on land use.

We also felt it was important to reach out to the whole of Scotland, as claiming the world’s first peatland world heritage site would be a national honour. With this in mind, we put together a talk series featuring BBC presenters Neil Oliver and Professor Iain Stewart and Bath City World Heritage Site Chairman Professor Barry Gilbertson which visited Thurso, Lairg and Inverness in July 2019. The talks attracted 842 attendees in total, while publicity for the events and our project reached an estimated 4 million people. In addition to this, we also secured a presentation space at Edinburgh Botanic Gardens during the Edinburgh Fringe festival to share our project with an international audience.

What happens next? 

After passing the Technical Evaluation stage in early 2020, the next step is to submit a full nomination package to UNESCO. We will put together a strong argument for why The Flow Country should be a world heritage site, as well as a draft management plan for the area and a defined boundary for the site.  This will be submitted to UNESCO in late 2022, with a decision being made by mid 2024.

Who are we?

The Technical Evaluation was submitted by The Peatlands Partnership (now Flow Country Partnership), which was formed in 2006 and is made up of the following organisations:  NatureScot, Forestry and Land Scotland, The Highland Council, RSPB Scotland, Plantlife International, the Environmental Research Institute (University of the Highlands and Islands), Highland Third Sector Interface, the Flow Country Rivers Trust, Northern Deer Management Group and Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE). 

In 2017 The Peatlands Partnership established the Flow Country World Heritage Site Working Group. This Working Group was tasked with carrying out an extensive community consultation and completing the technical evaluation of The Flow Country as a potential World Heritage Site. The Flow Country World Heritage Site Working Group consists of: NatureScot, Forestry and Land Scotland, The Highland Council, RSPB Scotland, The Environmental Research Institute, The Confederation of Forest Industries, HIE, The Federation of Small Businesses, Scottish Land and Estates, Rural Payments and Inspections Division, Wildland ltd. and Visit Scotland.

Have Your Say: Previous Consultation Outcomes

The Flow Country has experienced human influence for thousands of years and this landscape will continue to be shaped by those fortunate enough to call it their home. We want to work with communities to see that The Flow Country continues to be a world-class habitat, as well as ensuring that local people feel the benefit of this highest of heritage accolades.

Community consultation and input is key in shaping this bid, and what can be achieved through World Heritage inscription.  Information on previous consultation events is outlined below.  

As always, we would be delighted to hear from you at any stage of this process. Contact details can be found at the bottom of this page.

Draft management plan consultation: July-September 2022 

The Flow Country has experienced human influence for thousands of years and this landscape will continue to be shaped by those fortunate enough to call it their home. We have been working with communities to see that The Flow Country continues to be a world-class habitat, as well as ensuring that local people feel the benefit of this highest of heritage accolades.

Community consultation and input is key in shaping the World Heritage bid, and what can be achieved through World Heritage inscription.  Information on previous consultation events is outlined below.  This has included initial consultation of the concept in 2019, consultation on the proposed boundary (May - July 2022) and now on the draft management plan (18th of July - 12th September).

Managment plan

The draft management plan is a requirement of the UNESCO World Heritage nomination process. Of course, given the varied ownership and management across the site this plan does not aim to re-invent the wheel, but rather to draw together all of the current guidance, policy and plans into a coherent document.  This aims to document the plans and practices that are in place, and that have contributed to the peatlands of Caithness and Sutherland being the best and most extensive example of blanket bog ecosystem in the World, so that UNESCO can see that this very special place will continue to be managed in the way that has led it to be in such outstanding condition. 

The draft management plan is available here https://consult.highland.gov.uk/kse/event/36987.  Consultation opened on the 18th of June (press release), and closed on the 12th of September. 

 

Proposed boundary consultation: May-August 2022

The Flow Country Partnership took the draft Flow Country World Heritage site boundary on the road for a 16-day consultation tour of Caithness and Sutherland during May.  Taking in Golspie, Brora, Helmsdale, Dunbeath, Lybster, Wick Reay, Thurso, Halkirk, Strathy, Bettyhill, Tongue, Altnaharra, Kildonan, Halladale and Lairg, we recieved really valuable input that will help shape the future form of the proposed site.  Importantly we received approximately 80% support for the project.  Alongside in person consultation events an online portal was open till 1st of August, collecting further important feedback.

All of the information that has been received is now being collated and will be considered in preparing the final boundary.  A response to comments will also be published.  An initial collation of answers to frequently asked questions has been prepared and is available here - FAQs.   

 

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World Heritage listing would be an incredible accolade for the area and the communities that live and work there, and it is hoped it will also bring economic benefits.

If you want to see the main issues raised from the consultation on the draft boundary and the draft management plan, and the responses given you can access a consultation summary report here

 

Flow Country World Heritage Site concept Consultation: 2019

A number of consultation events were undertaken to consider views on the concept of a Flow Country World Heritage Site.  

Previous consultation in numbers3

 

Drop-in events

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Gail Ross MSP attends our Wick drop-in event

We held 15 drop-in events at locations across Caithness and Sutherland through May and June 2019. We were really pleased to speak to just under 200 people at these events – thank you very much to everyone who came out to see us.

 

Big events

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Professor Iain Stewart, Professor Barry Gilbertson and Neil Oliver (left to right) at our Eden Court event

From 5th – 7th July we held three very well-attended events in Lairg, Thurso and Inverness. A huge thank you to the 850 people who came out to hear Professor Barry Gilbertson, Professor Iain Stewart and Neil Oliver talk about The Flow Country and the World Heritage Site Project.

 

Contact us

We would love to hear your thoughts and questions, so please feel free to contact us using the details below:

steven.andrews@highland.gov.uk (Flow Country World Heritage Site Coordinator, The Highland Council)

joe.perry@highland.gov.uk (Climate Change Coordinator, The Highland Council)