Description of local environment

Air quality

There are no Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) within 10km of the scheme extents. 

There are no registered sites on the Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory (SPRI) located within 10km of the schemes.

There are no Air Quality Monitoring Stations (AQMS) within 10km of the scheme extents.

Due to the rural location of the works, baseline air quality is likely to be primarily influenced by traffic travelling along the A9; with secondary sources likely derived by the nearby land management activities and the nearby railway line.

Cultural heritage

The following cultural heritage features are recorded within 300m of the schemes (PastMap):

  • 4 National Records of the Historic Environment (NRHE), the closest of which is ‘Nuide Building’ (reference 117385) which lies approximately 5m north of the scheme.
  • 5 Historic Environment Records (HER’s), the closest of which is ‘Nuide Building’ (reference MHG27192) which lies approximately 5m north of the scheme.

None of the above listed features are designated protected assets.

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

Any features of cultural heritage are likely to have been discovered during the construction of the A9 trunk road. As works are restricted to the A9 trunk road boundary, it is unlikely that any unrecorded features of cultural heritage interest will be discovered and any potential impacts on cultural heritage will be negligible. Therefore this feature has not been considered further and has been scoped out of this assessment.

Landscape and visual effects

The scheme is located wholly within the Cairngorms National Park (Site ID: 8623) which is designated for the following general special qualities:

  • Magnificent mountains towering over moorland, forest and strath
  • Vastness of space, scale and height
  • Strong juxtaposition of contrasting landscapes
  • A landscape of layers, from inhabited strath to remote, uninhabited upland
  • ‘The harmony of complicated curves’
  • Landscapes both cultural and natural

The scheme is not located within a National Scenic Area or any other site designated for its landscape and visual character (SiteLink).

The scheme is located on a semi-rural stretch of the A9 east of Newtonmore and approximately 4km south of Kingussie. The surrounding land is dominated by montane scrubland; arable land; grazing pastures; scattered pockets of woodland; and freshwater habitat, with the River Spey a dominant landscape feature. The A9 trunk road and Highland Railway line are also dominant landscape features, as well as scattered residential settlements.

The scheme is located within the Landscape Character Type (LCT’s) ‘LCT 127- Upland Strath’ (NatureScot) which has the following key characteristics:

  • Large, broad, flat-bottomed strath, with some narrower pinch-point sections.
  • Valley floor with the meandering River Spey and frequent lochs and marshes.
  • Meadows and wetlands prone to flooding on the valley floor.
  • Mixed pastures and broadleaved woodland in more undulating areas.
  • Wetlands flanked by mixed woodland and conifer forests.
  • Main communication corridor housing A9 trunk road and railway.
  • Estate houses and policy landscapes in many parts of the strath.
  • A well-settled area with a series of settlements occurs along the northern side of the strath at bridging points over the River Spey. They are popular tourist destinations serving the Cairngorms National Park. Elsewhere farms and houses are frequent along main and minor roads.
  • Views to the Cairngorm mountains.
  • Noise and activity from busy A9.

The A9 Trunk Road connects Perth with Thurso. It commences immediately north of Inveralmond Roundabout in Perth leading generally northwards for a distance of 357 kilometres to its junction with an unclassified road leading to Holborn Head lighthouse at Scrabster. The A9 is a mixture of single carriageway, ‘2+1’ carriageway and stretches of two-lane dual carriageway. The A9 is a 2+1 carriageway at the scheme extent.

Biodiversity

The scheme lies 100m east, at its closest point, of the River Spey Special Area of Conservation (SAC) (Site ID: 8365), Insh Marshes SAC (Site ID: 8274), River Spey-Insh Marshes Special Protection Area (SPA) (Site ID: 8571) and River Spey-Insh Marshes Ramsar (Site ID: 8452).

The River Spey-Insh Marshes Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) (Site ID: 1364) overlaps with the SAC’s, SPA and Ramsar at a distance of 100m west of the scheme.

The National Biodiversity Network (NBN) Atlas holds several records of bird species within 2km of the schemes (the search criteria included only records during the past ten years, and which have open-use attributions (OGL-CC0-CC-BY)). Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended), all wild birds and their active nests are protected, with certain species receiving additional protections.

The NBN Atlas holds the following records of injurious weeds (as listed in the Network Management contract (NMC)) under the same search criteria:

  • Creeping thistle (Cirsium arvense)
  • Broad leaved dock (Rumex obtusifolius)
  • Common ragwort (Jacobaea vulgaris)
  • Spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare)
  • Rosebay willowherb (Chamerion angustifolium)

There are no records of invasive non-native species (INNS) on the NBN Atlas under the same search criteria. Additionally, the Transport Scotland Asset Management Performance System (AMPS) holds no records of INNS or injurious weeds within 300m of the scheme extent.

Habitat in the surrounding area is dominated by montane scrubland; arable land; grazing pastures; scattered pockets of woodland; and freshwater habitat. 

There are several areas of woodland as listed on the Ancient Woodland Inventory (AWI) within 300m of the scheme and overlapping the scheme extent, all of which are of ‘ancient (of semi-natural origin)’.

There are no areas of trees covered by a Tree Preservation Order (TPO) by Highland Council within 300m of the scheme.

Geology and soils

There are no Geological Conservation Review Sites (GCRS’s) or SSSI’s designated for geological features within 300m of the scheme (SiteLink).

Component soils throughout the scheme extent comprise the following soil types (Scotland’s Soils):

  • Humus-iron podzols
  • Mineral alluvial soils with peaty alluvial soils

Soils in the area around the scheme extent are comprised of Class 0 mineral soils, and peatland habitats are not typically found on such soils (Carbon and Peatland Map 2016).

Bedrock geology within the scheme extent is comprised of the following (Scottish Geology Trust):

  • Ardverikie Till Formation- Diamicton
  • Head- gravel, sand, silt and clay
  • Alluvial Fan Deposits- gravel, sand, silt and clay
  • Alluvium- sand, gravel and boulders
  • Glaciofluvial Sheet Deposits- sand, gravel and boulders

Material assets and waste

The proposed resurfacing works are required to resurface the worn carriageways (northbound and southbound), remove the surface course and repair structural defects. Road markings and studs will also be installed. Materials used will consist of:

  • Asphaltic materials (TS2010 surface course and warm mix AC20 binder course and warm mix AC32 base course)
  • Milled in road studs
  • Thermoplastic road marking paint
  • Bituminous emulsion bond coat

Due to the scheme value, there is no requirement for a Site Waste Management Plan. The contractor is responsible for the disposal of road planings and this has been registered in accordance with the Paragraph 13 (a) waste exemption issued by SEPA, as described in Schedule 3of the Waste Management Licensing Regulations 2011 (exemption number: WML/XS/2008309).

Coal tar has not been identified on site and no site compound is required for these works. Storage of plant and equipment will be within TM on the A9 carriageway. 

Noise and vibration

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

The works do not fall within a Candidate Noise Management Area (CNMA) as defined by Transport Scotland’s Transportation Noise Action Plan (TNAP) 2019-2023.

Modelled noise data for the A9 at the scheme extent shows that the day, evening and night levels (Lden) fall between 65-75dB (SpatialData.gov.scot).

Due to the semi-rural location of the scheme, baseline noise levels are likely to be primarily influenced by traffic travelling along the A9; with secondary sources derived from nearby land management activities and the nearby railway line.

Population and human health

The scheme lies on a semi-rural stretch of the A9 east of Newtonmore and approximately 4km south of Kingussie. There are 5 residential properties within proximity to the scheme, all located to the west of the NB carriageway. The closest of these is located 25m from the trunk road with minimal screening from a narrow strip of trees.

There is one land management access junction located adjacent to the SB carriageway within the scheme extent. There are no other junctions, access points or laybys within the footprint of the scheme.

The Highland Mainline Railway runs parallel to the west of the A9 at a distance of 410m at its closest point.

In 2024, the annual average daily flow (AADF) of traffic was estimated on the A9 trunk road at the scheme extent (Site ID: 0000JTC00352) accounted for 9737 vehicles, with 25.1% of these heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) (Transport Scotland Traffic Count Data).

TM will involve night-time single lane closures with two-way traffic lights and a convoy system in place.

Road drainage and the water environment

The scheme extent and surrounding area is underpinned by the Upper Spey Sand and Gravel groundwater (ID: 150814). This is 252.4 square kilometres in area and in 2023 was assigned ‘Good Ecological Potential’ by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) under the Water Framework Directive (WFD) (SEPA).

The River Spey-Spey Dam to Loch Insh is a river (ID: 23142) in the River Spey catchment of the Scotland river basin district. The main stem is approximately 34.8 kilometres in length and it lies 100m west of the scheme at its closest point. The water body has been designated as a heavily modified water body on account of physical alterations that cannot be addressed without a significant impact on water storage for hydroelectricity generation. In 2023, the it was assigned ‘Moderate Ecological Potential’ by SEPA under the WFD (SEPA).

There are several unclassified waterbodies, drains, springs and culverts in proximity to the scheme and culverted under the A82 within the scheme extent (SEPA).

SEPA Flood Map has highlighted a high risk of surface water and small watercourses flooding in small areas throughout the scheme extent (i.e. a 10% chance of flooding each year). There is no risk of river water flooding within the scheme extent.

Climate

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).