Proposals to open a gold mine in a Scottish national park are set to be rejected

CONTROVERSIAL plans to open a gold mine in one of the most picturesque parts of Scotland are expected to be rejected next week after a planning chief recommended the scheme be turned down..

• Alan Ross and Brendan Hickey bore into the Tyndrum hills, Perthshire, in search of gold, September 1988.

Perth firm Scotgold Resources Limited wants permission to extract 72,000 tonnes of ore annually for up to ten years at the disused Cononish Goldmine, near Tyndrum, in the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park.

However, in a report yesterday the national park's director of planning recommended the application be refused by the board when it meets next week.

Gordon Watson said in the report he had concerns the mine would damage the landscape and he thought the economic legacy would be "marginal".

The planned gold mine has divided opinion. The local community council argued it could generate 1.5 million for the economy each year and create almost 60 jobs. But Scottish Natural Heritage, RSPB and other groups objected, saying it would damage the landscape.

In his report Mr Watson said the mine would have a negative impact on the public enjoyment of the "special qualities" of the area, including the walk in to Ben Lui, one of Scotland's most popular munros.

"Active mining operations will impact on a currently very still and remote glen," he said. "There is likely to be negative impact on perceptions of visitors who may seek such experiences elsewhere. The impacts will be acute for the life of the mine."

He went on to question claims by Scotgold that the mine would contribute 50m to the economy. "There is a risk that the economic benefits will be very transitory and highly dependent on gold prices remaining at their current value," he said. "It is not entirely clear how the figure of 50m has been calculated and it is considered to be overstated."

He added: "The longer term economic legacy is likely to be marginal while the long term landscape impacts will certainly not be."

• A brief history of gold in Scotland

Mr Watson also said the proposal went against the aims of the National Park designation within the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000, which says where there is conflict the aims of conservation must be paramount.

The parks authority is due to debate the application next Wednesday.

Chris Sangster, chief executive of Scotgold, was "very disappointed" by Mr Watson's recommendation to refuse the company's application. "We don't agree with Gordon Watson's statement about the dubious economic benefits of our operation," he said."We are a mining company and we are used to the environment in which we operate - and we don't embark on projects which are not going to deliver economic benefits."

He added: "It is the board's decision and obviously we will be making strong representations to the board in terms of what we believe to be the benefits and mitigatory measures that the project encompasses. We hope that the national parks in Scotland are open for business."

The firm hopes to extract ore from a quartz vein that runs through Beinn Churn, a 2,887ft high hill in Cononish Glen, less than two miles south west of Tyndum.