Calls to stop the merry-go-round of owners for carbon credit estate in Badenoch
Calls have been made for a large Badenoch estate used for carbon credits to be taken over by a community company to bring an end to the ‘merry-go-round’ of owners.
The 3,668-acre Far Ralia Estate was put up for sale yesterday by abrdn Property Income Trust Limited with a £12m price tag.
Their selling agents have said the move presents investors with a unique chance to take part in one of the largest restoration projects in the UK.
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Badenoch estate put on market for £12m by ‘green laird’
But the estate owners have been accused of greenwashing in the past and now of trying to make a fast buck with the sale.
Far Ralia has an approved and fully funded reforestation scheme underway that is estimated to sequester an estimated 346,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide over its lifetime.
Conservationist Dave Morris said: “This land purchase merry-go-round from ownership by the Drysdale family to Standard Life to abrdn to goodness knows who, all within the last five years, needs to stop.
“Perhaps the only solution that respects local needs will be the setting up of a community based development trust that can use the powers contained within part 5 of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016.
“This allows for the compulsory purchase of the whole of the Far Ralia estate from whoever owns it.”
Nick Kempe of independent national park watchdog ParkswatchScotland, said: “The £12m price is outrageous.
“They bought for £7.5m in September 2021 and three years later are marketing for £12m having so far received as far as I can work out £1.5m out of £2.5m forestry grant.
“The mounding will have released lots of carbon into atmosphere and official WCC figures show there will be net emissions for 15 years that in my view is a considerable underestimate - so the value of the land for carbon offsetting purposes should have gone down not up.
“Anyone really wanting to help nature and offset carbon emissions should not touch this with a barge pole
“At the moment there is a retrospective planning application for the track through the estate, which was widened without planning permission being considered by the Cairngorms National Park Authority.
“The only good thing about this is that abdrn appears to recognise that land ownership is not a good thing but that has not stopped them making an enormous buck.”
The owners have said that much of the woodland creation work at Far Ralia has been done and the remainder will be completed when the planting season begins again later this year.
A bothy is almost complete. It is currently being used as a site office until the planting work is complete.
It is expected to be free for all to use hopefully before the end of this year.
The Strathy has seen correspondence from abrdn representatives which outlines the decision behind the sale.
It states: “The board and shareholders for the abrdn Property Income Trust, the fund which owns Far Ralia, have voted in favour of a managed wind down of the fund.
“This means that all assets will be disposed including Far Ralia…
“The sale is unavoidable given the fund is being wound up and is in no way a reflection of abrdn’s wider strategy for natural capital.
“This is progressing as planned, and we are sorry not to be able to take Far Ralia on to the next stage.”
The original acquisition was made by an investment arm of Standard Life which later became abdrn.
The Guardian newspaper has also reported on the sale and described the estate as a lightning rod for disputes over wealthy green lairds buying up the Highlands’.
The owners have has so far planted 1.2m native trees including Scots pine, birch, oak, rowan and aspen, after winning £2.56m in public subsidies to help cover its costs. It has a further 200 hectares of damaged peatland to restore.
Fraser Green, Head of Natural Capital Investment at abrdn, said: “Over the last three years we have taken an area of land that was previously predominantly used as a grouse moor and progressed a series of substantial environmentally beneficial activities.
“This includes restoration of native pine and birch woodland through planting and natural regeneration, with a further opportunity to restore degraded peatland, drawing input from the Natural History Museum.”
