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Economic Sustainability
This culture has flourished because of the economic activity. Where there are sustainable jobs, then communities, schools, shops and all the ancillary services can also be maintained. This is vitally important in remote moorland areas where there are few other viable sources of income.
This works in a “trickle down” chain -
- Sporting, farming and tourism income pays for employment of keepers, farmers, shepherds, beaters, wildlife rangers etc
- Habitat management uses local trades, suppliers and contractors
- Investment in housing and infrastructure helps building and other trades
- Local wages keep shops, schools and health services viable
- Shooting parties use local hotels, shops, garages and other suppliers.
It is notoriously difficult to calculate the full economic value of this economic system, although a number of studies have been done, particularly into grouse shooting:
McGilvray / University of Strathclyde 2001
Once multiplier effects are taken into account, we estimate that grouse shooting supports a total of 940 full time equivalent jobs across Scotland and £17 million of GDP
Almost one quarter of the sampled estates derived more than half their income from grouse shooting and around one fifth were involved in “green tourist” activities
The 1990’s were a low point for grouse shooting in Scotland, and since then there has been considerable new investment and development of new enterprises. A survey by the Scottish Countryside Alliance in 2007 estimated that there had been at least twenty five new owners injecting an additional £10 million per annum into Scottish grouse estates and their infrastructure. Given economic developments since 2001 it is likely that grouse shooting in Scotland now supports close to £30 million of GDP per annum. This contribution is being made directly into some of the most remote areas of Scotland
A comprehensive report - Shooting Facts - on all shooting sports across the UK was carried out in 2004 by PACEC consultants. It contains facts and figures on all types of shooting in Scotland and on grouse moors across the UK.
Shooting and stalking of all types in Scotland involves 1.5 million gun days per year, worth £240 million to the Scottish economy. Shooting influences the management of 4.4 million hectares, approximately half of which is grouse moor.
Figures for income and investment generated by sheep farming, deer stalking and other moorland enterprises are not readily available. The general rule of thumb is that they provide a small but relatively stable annual income, whereas grouse shooting can provide much higher level of income but on an irregular basis. A sustainable moorland economy needs both.
Key to this sustainability is that sporting and tourism require minimum public subsidy, and generate real market income which shows no sign of declining in Scotland. Many other rural enterprises are dependent on subsidy, ie. farming, forestry, power generation.