2. The Cairngorms
Page 7
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Cairn Gorm had faced a few disastrous seasons with disappointing snow cover. Coupled with this were the high winds prevalent in the Highlands which closed the chairlifts. Frustrating times indeed as these high winds offered tremendous skiing in drift areas but kept people from getting up the hill to ski! Something had to be done to revitalise skiing at Cairn Gorm and in early 1992 a development plan for the Cairn Gorm ski area was prepared. It was decided that a mountain railway could help refocus attention on Cairn Gorm, and May 1993- August 1994 saw the preparation of a planning application for the funicular (mountain) railway. On 29th August 1994 a planning application with an environmental statement was submitted to Highland Council. On 30th October 1994 the European Community (EC) Birds and Habitats Directive comes into effect. On 2nd November, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) responded to the planning application and objected on 2 counts - the scale and visual impact of the Ptarmigan building and the inadequacy of proposals for visitor management to protect sensitive areas. |
Funicular
railways are used to transport people up and down mountains.
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