In general, how do you think this place copes with hazardous weather events?
Pretty well.
What features (physical, economic, social) make this place vulnerable or resilient to hazardous weather conditions?
It's reasonably sheltered by the Evanton Woods and the village doesn't have any obvious "corridors" between buildings acting as funnels for wind. The slope down to the village centre does cause flooding from time to time in heavy downpours because the storm drains are inadequate.
The increase in housing, and in particular car traffic, will result in additional roads (with run-off) and more air pollution.
Are there environmental or weather conditions which make this place feel unsafe (flooding, air quality, busy roads, ice, high winds, storm surges, etc.)?
The flooding issue mentioned would be a problem for properties in the area close to where the water builds up, and in 2006 there was very severe flood damage to the west of the village, with sections of road washed away completely in one storm, with holes up to 3 feet deep and 20 feet long appearing, covering up to half the road in some places.
Is it possible and/or comfortable to move around this place in different weather conditions (rain, snow, wind, heat, etc.)?
It's generally okay but in icy conditions some pavements and roads are treacherous, being in shadow and therefore likely to stay frozen for long periods. There are few really exposed areas.
Are there delays or cancellations due to the weather? What do people do?
I'm not aware of any problems like this, other than access onto the A9 or with delays or cancellations to bus services. The north line train passes through the village but doesn't stop, in spite of there being a platform, and in spite of there having been a significant petition from residents for it to do so. Having an alternative means of public transport to the bus would be useful, especially for occasions when the Kessock Bridge is closed because of high winds.
Are outdoor spaces safe and pleasant to walk, meet, or socialise in all weather? Do people go elsewhere?
The Evanton Woods is community owned and managed, and is well run, but also very well used. There are events and activities running most weeks and frequently daily. There is a log cabin that can be used for group events with a compostable toilet next to it and another open-sided building in another part of the woods with barbecue facilities. The paths are in good condition and the volume of activities and people using the woods mean I generally feel safe to be there. Others, especially single women, may feel differently though.
In addition to the woods there is a recreation ground, but I'm not sure how well that's use or who accessible it is currently as it's next to where the council is building new houses.
An area in the centre of the village has been made into a "village green" but it's not sued that often. And there is the Black Rock Park, taken up mostly by the football ground.
Lastly, it's relatively easy to get onto Novar Estate where there are numerous tracks, many associated with the wind farm, which are great for mountain biking, and paths going to the Cromarty Firth mean it's possible to get to the shore fairly easily.
Does the weather ever lead to overcrowding of spaces or facilities?
Not to my knowledge, although the car park by the Kiltearn Cemetery is sometimes ridiculously full, especially in hot summer holidays and at New Year.
Could more natural space be available or could existing natural space be better supported?
The only place where some improvement is obviously needed is alongside the River Skiach as it flows down past Balconie Castle Stables to the Firth. Paths were constructed from the road alongside the river down to the bridge and along the Firth and these have lasted well, other than in one place where the river in spate has washed away a significant part of the bank, eroding the path. In spite of gabion baskets and reinforcing having been done, as well as work on redirecting the river flow, the hole left by the erosion is still big with an overhang and steep drop to the river. This has resulted in walkers encroaching onto the field margin, to pass the area safely.
Have you noticed the species of plants and/or animals have changed here over time?
Yes. The number of swallows, swifts, martins, bats and insects have declined massively over the last couple of years.
We used to have bats nesting for part of the summer under the eaves of our house, and swifts under a different part. For the last few years we have had neither, and the number of swifts I've seen in the village has dropped to less than 6 this year. I've seen no bats at all.
The same is true of swallows. They are present in small numbers, particularly near the Cemetery, but otherwise very rare.
The number of birds such as yellowhammers, buntings, skylarks and thrushes has also declined to hardly any. I reckon myself lucky to hear one thrush anywhere in the village area now. And skylarks seem almost absent this year.
Conversely, the number of crows seems to have increased dramatically, although this may be due to the fact they're more obvious as they're raiding bird feeders in the garden incessantly this year - up to 12 crows at one time around one feeding station!
The number of ash trees now dead because of ash dieback is horrendous. On one stretch of track from the village down to Balconie Castle Stables there are probably as many as 10 dead ash trees.
I've also seen almost no poppies anywhere on roadsides this year, and very few oxeye daisies, though I'd put this down to spraying by farmers, not climate change.
In our garden I've noticed a proliferation of marsh orchids in the "lawn" - we now have 8 in an area measuring 15 feet by 15 feet. I initially thought this was due to the ground being damp and suited to them (there is a fair bit of moss) but I'm not sure that's all that explains their presence.
How do buildings and infrastructure cope with the climate today? Are they prone to flooding, damp/mould, draughts, cold, or over-heating?
I can only comment on our house. This is a 200 year old stone built house with slate roof. The stone walls are up to 3 feet thick and keep the indoor spaces cool in summer but are almost impossible to keep really warm in the winter without serious heating.
We have replaced most windows with double glazed ones, have mains gas central heating and a wood burning stove in one room, and it's only with the use of a smart heating system (tado) that we've managed to keep the place warm without overheating some parts.
We are lucky in that the house was just high enough to avoid being affected by the flooding that took place in 2006 but our neighbours were less fortunate and they have found it almost impossible to get insurance since then I think.
Has there been damage or increased maintenance needs due to the weather? Are repairs carried out?
A section of our wooden fence (constructed with gaps to allow wind to pass through) was blown down in the most recent storm, with 3 inch square wooden posts bolted to a concrete block wall snapped off. In the same storm a mature town tree (about 25 feet tall) was blown over with the roots lifted out of the ground.
I am in the process of repairing the fence and removing the stump of the tree which could not be saved.
In previous years we've had 2 greenhouses completely destroyed by storms, but that's partly due to siting and the way they were built I think, not only the strength of gusts. We've taken the decision not to have a greenhouse since then.
Would you describe the community as strong, cohesive, and integrated?
Evanton is generally a friendly place, with a reasonable sense of community, but like virtually every other village, there are several small groups of people who "drive" much of the community activities. For example there wood is managed by the Community Wood Company that is open to everybody, but where there are probably no more than 20 people who carry out work. There is now a "sharing shed" where excess food from the Co-op and other donations from residents (food and other good, books, toys, cosmetics) is available for anybody to take and use for free. This is not a food bank as it's unattended and is aimed at seeing the food etc used, rather than going to landfill, so there's no "testing" of need and it relies on trust. I'd say the fact that this is not abused indicates quite well the nature of the village, but it also relies on a small handful of people to open up, clean, close the facility.
There is an Evanton community web page and Facebook group and this seems well used and I've seen several posts from new people moving to the village looking for advice and help, which again suggests there is a perception that the community is welcoming and supportive.
Lastly, during the lockdown in the pandemic, it was really noticeable how active some young folk were in making sure elderly neighbours were okay and had access to anything they needed.
How could people better support each other during extreme weather events?
Not sure, but I suspect the reaction to looking after neighbours during the pandemic, and the other "community support" measures described above would all be put to good use in situations where need arose.
How do businesses/services cope with different kinds of weather? Is demand affected by different weather?
Not sure, as I don't run a business and work from home part time. I'm astonished how brilliant our local Co-op is though - nothing seems to be a problem for them and they always seem to have a good stock of a wide ranges of food, much more than just the essentials.
The Post Office shut last year with the death of the post-mistress, and has been replaced with a post van visiting from Dingwall twice a week. It will be interesting to see whether this service is disrupted at all by extreme weather. I suspect mechanical or vehicle problems will be the ones we notice more often though.
Are there plans in place to help people access businesses/services in hazardous conditions?
Don't know.
What could help businesses/services cope or get up and running again following extreme weather?
I suspect the use of the facebook page and contacts by word of mouth would result in a number of people providing help if needed in these situations. There seems to be a good range of people with practical abilities in the village so we're lucky from that point of view.
Weather events and climate change happening somewhere else could impact your place. Has this happened before?
If the Kessock Bridge is shut due to high winds and the road from Beauly to Inverness is closed due to flooding or fallen trees, we are effectively cut off from Inverness and the south. this has happened occasionally in the past, but it seems to be growing more likely year by year.
Also, the road to Dingwall from the Cromarty Firth Bridge has been shut several times in the last few years because of landslides. This results in traffic going on the old A9 (the Back Road) which is single track in many places and very unsuitable for HGVs and heavy traffic, with blockages always occurring. Again, once that happens, it's difficult to get anywhere!
Do you know how the climate will change in this place in the future?
My crystal ball is not very accurate on a geolocation basis, but I'd expect severe weather events (high winds, flooding, periods of no rain, periods of high temperatures) to occur more often, albeit unpredictably. I'd also expect winters to be less severely cold, but possibly to drag on with prolonged low temperatures affecting growing seasons, heating costs, maintenance and outdoor work. Not to mention the impact on wildlife, especially insects and the animals and plants that depend on them.
Can the critical systems and infrastructure (drainage, cooling, electric) cope with more frequent and extreme disruptive weather?
Probably not. There seems to be piecemeal investment and the local authorities have been under-funded for decades, most noticeable with potholes in roads becoming horrendous and road resurfacing being very patchy, literally.
How do you think this place can be made more resilient?
More investment, funded by much higher taxes on the super rich... Don't get me started.
Probably also much much more education on mitigating factors that people can/should take to reduce their impact on global warming. For many people it's such an enormous issue they don't see they can do anything meaningful to change it positively - that needs to change.
Do you know what climate adaptation measures could be implemented at this place and who is responsible for implementing them?
I can think of a few things that might "pre-empt" problems already seen from extreme weather (e.g flooding), such as better drainage and making certain parts of the village restricted driving areas.
As to who would be responsible for these, I'd imaging the council and/or community council. But I'd have to say I would expect there to be enormous push back as people generally are too selfish, and currently, too poorly educated on what measures they can/should take themselves.
Do you have a vision for what you would like this place to look like in the future? Does it include how it might adapt to climate change?
I'm not sure I'd go so far as to call it a vision, but I'd like to see the community council press for making the streets more difficult to use by cars, providing separated cycle lanes, but also using wind farm money it receives to support people to get into cycling more (why couldn't the community council provide either e-bikes for older people or maybe even have a bike hire facility in the village centre?)
I'd also like to see the Co-op's brilliant facility for recycling soft plastics (like chocolate bar wrappers) increased hugely in capacity, with better signage to encourage use.
There are quite a few people who grow lots of fruit and veg in the village - while the sharing shed is available, often they'll have either excess seedlings or a glut of crop that others might benefit from. It would be good to see a mechanism set up to enable these to be either given away or at least swapped? Or maybe both? Swapping might encourage more people to grow more?
Lastly, re transport more generally, I'd like to see Evanton station reinstated and the trains stopping here regularly again, I'd like to see a new separate access road built from the new houses at Teandallon on to the road out of the village, to avoid congestion in the centre, and finally, improvements to the junction with the A9 after the railway bridge - probably the most cost effective traffic control measure would be a roundabout.
*Originally submitted to the Highland Weather & Climate Story Map Commonplace Platform on 8 June 2023.
