The Shared Rural Network scheme has two elements:
*a sensible one (PNS), funded by mobile operators, to improve coverage to scattered rural communities and public roads
*a crazy one (TNS), publicly-funded, to build 320 new masts in uninhabited areas of Scotland.
The TNS contract is the one which concerns walker and climbers, because these uninhabited areas are valued for their wildness, and the new masts, generators and access tracks will cause significant damage for miniscule public benefit. The contractual target is to maximise the area of new coverage in TotalNotSpot areas, as defined by Ofcom. Climbers familiar with Scotland will not be surprised that almost all TNS areas are uninhabited, and designated as Wild Land by NatureScot. See e.g.my map of the Fisherfield area, around An Teallach.
The TNS programme is funded by an upfront £354m from UK government and managed by a private company, Digital Mobile Spectrum Ltd which is immune to FOI requests.
Ofcom Ts&Cs are published in '2020 Coverage Obligations - Notice of compliance verification methodology' but the main points are these:
>New masts MUST be in TNS areas.
>An ‘Initial Radio Plan’ with 320 TNS sites has been approved by Ofcom, but not published.
>If planning permission is refused, two further attempts must be made in nearby sites.
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0031/192919/notice-of-compl...
All TNS planning applications to date use diesel generators; almost all require new ATV access tracks.
Now my opinion: this is environmental vandalism and a waste of resources which would be better used to improve connectivity where it is needed, where people are asking for it, or (basically) where there are people. 18,000 premises in Scotland are still without decent broadband.
In Scotland bolting a route is unacceptable. An ironing board on Ben Nevis is outrageous. One of these masts is 100x bigger, and needs a permanent access track and refuelling vehicles. 320 masts is beyond outrageous. It is widely expected that 4G will be redundant in 10 years time. Responsible climbers in remote regions should use a PLB with 10year battery life, not rely on mobile phones.
The UK government supports this, though one wonders if they truly understand it. Who is agin it?
Torridon C Council, Knoydart Foundation, Ballater C Council, National Trust for Scotland, Highland Regional Council, Community Land Scotland, John Muir Trust, Mountaineering Scotland, North-East Mountain Trust, Ramblers Scotland, Scottish Wild Land Group, The Munro Society, Woodland Trust Scotland. How about you?
