Air quality

The scheme is not located within an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) declared by the Highland council (Air Quality in Scotland).

No Air Quality Monitoring Stations (AQMS) are located within 10km of the proposed works (Air Quality in Scotland).

No Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory (SPRI) sites which record air pollutant releases are located within 10km of the scheme (Scotland’s Environment).

Baseline air quality in the study area is mainly influenced by vehicles travelling along the A82 trunk road.

Cultural heritage

The scheme is located within 300m of three undesignated cultural heritage features listed on Canmore or Historic Environment Record databases; one of these is the Cnoc nam Bocan milestone (20^th century) which lies within the scheme near the western extent (PastMap).

There are no Listed Buildings, Scheduled Monuments, World Heritage Sites, Garden & Designed Landscapes, Battlefields or Conservation Areas within 300m of the scheme (PastMap).

The construction of the A82 trunk road will likely have exposed any potential items of cultural heritage interest present within the upper engineered layers, however there is still potential for items of cultural heritage to be present within the verges.

Landscape and visual effects

The scheme is located along a stretch of the A82 carriageway that passes through Glen Coe. The surrounding area is dominated by upland peaks and boggy moorland with freshwater in the form of watercourses and lochs lower down the glen. This area is very popular with tourists and outdoor recreationists.

The scheme lies within Ben Nevis and Glen Coe National Scenic Area (NSA) (NatureScot Site ID: 9120). The NSA has the following Special Qualities:

• A land of mountain grandeur
• A land of classic highland vistas
• Human settlement dwarfed by mountain and moorland
• The expansive Moor of Rannoch
• The spectacular drama of Glen Coe
• The wooded strath of lower Glen Coe
• The narrow and enclosed Loch Leven
• The impressive massif of Ben Nevis
• The wild Mamores and secretive Glen Nevis
• The fjord-like upper Loch Leven
• Long and green Glen Etive
• The dark heritage

The scheme is not located within a National Park (NP).

The A82 Trunk Road connects Alexandria with Crianlarich, Fort William and Inverness. It commences immediately north of Tullichewan Roundabout in Alexandria leading generally northwards for a distance of 243 kilometres to its junction with the A9 at (but excluding) Longman Roundabout in Inverness. The A82 is predominantly single carriageway along its length, with some lengths of ‘2+1’ carriageway. The A82 is a single carriageway at the scheme extents.

Biodiversity

The scheme extents fully lies within Glen Etive and Glen Fyne Special Protection Area (SPA) (NatureScot Site Code: 10113). Due to the work location within this European site, a Habitats Regulations Appraisal (HRA) has been produced. Refer to the relevant assessment section below for details. 

The Glencoe National Nature Reserve (NNR) (Site Code: 10532) lies 100m south of the scheme.

The National Biodiversity Network (NBN) Atlas holds no records of protected mammals within 2km of the scheme in the last 10 years; however, this does not preclude their potential presence in the area. Only records with open-use attributions (OGL, CC0, CC-BY) were included in the search criteria. Several bird species have been recorded using the same criteria and under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended), all wild birds and their active nests are protected.

The NBN Atlas and Transport Scotland’s Asset Management Performance System (AMPS) hold no records of invasive non-native plant species (INNS) or injurious weeds within 2km of the scheme; however, this does not preclude their potential presence in the area.

There are no areas of woodland listed on the Ancient Woodland Inventory Scotland or any Tree Preservation Orders (TPOs) within 200m of the scheme.

Habitat surrounding the scheme is dominated by wet acidic grassland and heathland, scattered deciduous trees and exposed rocky slopes.

The BEAR Scotland NW Environment team carried out a preliminary ecological appraisal (PEA) on 12th February 2025.

Geology and soils

The scheme does not lie within a Geological Conservation Review Site (GCRS), or within a geologically designated Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) (NatureScot).

Bedrock within the scheme extents is comprised of ‘Eilde Flags formation – psammite and micaceous’ which is a metamorphic bedrock, and ‘Etive Dyke Swarm – microdiorite and porphyritic’ which is an igneous bedrock (BGS Geology Viewer). Superficial deposits are described as ‘hummocky glacial deposits – diamicton, sand and gravel’.

The local soil type is recorded as ‘peaty gleyed podzols with dystrophic semi-confined peat with peaty gleys’ of the Countesswells association (Scotland’s Environment Map).

Soils within the scheme extent are recorded as being ‘Class 2’ as displayed on Scotland’s Peat Map. Class 2 relates to nationally important carbon-rich soils with deep peat and priority peatland habitat.

Material assets and waste

The proposed works are necessary to ensure that the A82 carriageway remains in safe condition for road users. A range of plant and machinery will be utilised during the works, consisting of excavator, delivery wagons and a mobile welfare unit. 

Materials used will consist of concrete, P4 terminals, and new VRS safety barriers. Any excavated soil material from the works will be site casted within the scheme extents. Old VRS material is anticipated to be recycled.

A site waste management plan (SWMP) is not required as the estimated bid value is below £350,00.

Noise and vibration

For residential, community and commercial receptors refer to the ‘Population and Human Health’ section below.

Works are not located within a Candidate Noise Management Area (CNMA) or Candidate Quiet Areas (CQA).

Noise modelled data from Environmental Noise Directive (END) Round 4 Noise Mapping indicates 24 hour annual average noise level (Lden) between 60 and 70dB at the scheme location (SpatialData).

The baseline noise and vibration in the scheme extents is primarily influenced by vehicles travelling along the A82 trunk road.

Population and human health

There are two properties within 300m of the scheme, both near the eastern extent: Altnafeadh House lies 50m northeast of the scheme, and Lagangarbh Hut lies 300m to the south. It is unknown if the Altnafeadh property is occupied full time, but it has some roadside screening in the form of a tree belt. Lagangarbh Hut is used by mountaineering clubs but not occupied full time. Access to both is from the carriageway just outwith the eastern scheme extent.

The ‘Devil’s Staircase’ layby lies on the eastbound side of the carriageway within the scheme extent, with the Buchaille Etive Mor carpark lying on the opposite side of the carriageway. The Glencoe viewpoint car park lies 200m west of the scheme on the southern side.

The West Highland Way walking route passes adjacent to the northern side of the carriageway at the eastern scheme extent, and there are also two circular walking routes that start in the Buchaille Etive Mor carpark and run adjacent to the carriageway along the verge for part of the routes (WalkHighlands). However, both routes are possible to start from different parking spots which would avoid them passing close to the works

The area is popular with recreationists and tourists, receiving high amounts of foot and vehicular traffic during peak months.

There are no National Cycle Network (NCN) routes or Core Paths within 300m of the scheme.

Road drainage and the water environment

Two tributary watercourses (one of which is shown on an 1:50,000 OS map) are culverted under the carriageway within the scheme extent and outflow into the River Coupall, which lies 80m south of the scheme at its closest point. River Coupall (ID: 10319) has been assigned an overall status of ‘Good’ by SEPA in 2023 (SEPA Water Classification Hub). Drainage within the scheme consists of a ditch along the eastbound carriageway and partly along the westbound carriageway, with the rest mitigated by sheet flow.

The scheme falls within the ‘Upper Glen Coe’ groundwater body, which was classified by SEPA in 2023 as having ‘Good’ overall condition and is also recorded as a Drinking Water Protected Area (DWPA) (Ground) (SEPA).

The scheme area is not classed as having any likelihood of flooding within 300m of the scheme (SEPA Flood Maps).

Climate

The Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 (‘The Act’), and its subsequent amendment under the Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets) (Scotland) Act 2019, sets the framework for the Scottish Government to address climate change. The Act has an ambitious target to reach Net Zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045, with any residual emissions balanced by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This is five years earlier than the rest of the UK due to the greater potential for carbon sequestration in Scotland.

The Act was amended to replace interim targets with carbon budgets. Carbon budgets are legally binding caps on greenhouse gas emissions in Scotland over five-year periods. In line with the Act, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) published advice on the level of Scotland’s four carbon budgets, covering the period 2026 to 2045, recommending what the Scottish Government sets its carbon budgets at for annual average levels of emissions. These recommendations are based on an ambitious but credible route to Net Zero for Scotland by 2045.

Emissions reductions from surface transport are the largest contribution to meeting the first two carbon budgets. The pathway for surface transport emission reduction is primarily driven by the uptake of electric vehicles, in addition to measures to enable a shift from car use to public transport and active travel, which all play a role in reducing emissions from fossil fuel cars. Ensuring efficiency of existing transport infrastructure and improving/providing new active travel facilities is therefore important to support these carbon reduction budgets.

Transport is the largest contributor to harmful climate emissions in Scotland. In response to the climate emergency, Transport Scotland are committed to reducing their emissions by 75% by 2030 and to the above noted legally binding target of net-zero by 2045. Transport Scotland is committed to reducing carbon across Scotland’s transport network and this commitment is being enacted through the Mission Zero for Transport (Mission Zero for transport | Transport Scotland).

Policies and plans

This Record of Determination (RoD) has been undertaken in accordance with all relevant regulations, guidance, policies and plans, notably including the Environment and Sustainability Discipline of the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB)) and Transport Scotland's Environmental Impact Assessment Guidance (Guidance - Environmental Impact Assessments for road projects (transport.gov.scot)).