A GOVERNMENT quango could be sued for £150,000 damages amid claims it left a famous Loch Lomond island looking like a ‘wasteland’ by deliberately poisoning and killing hundreds of ancient beech trees.

Luss Estates, which owns Inchtavannach, has accused Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) of ‘environmental vandalism’ by injecting 300-year-old trees with poison during an operation to remove rhododendron and beech saplings and to gradually fell mature beech trees.

The land owner claims that SNH decided to ring-bark and poison hundreds of beech trees all at the same time, without consulting them.

Its lawyers say this was a clear breach of any consent to them carrying out work on the island and the poisoning of the trees was ‘entirely unauthorised’.

Lawyers for Luss Estates are demanding that the quango covers the cost of felling dead trees that are still standing, removing felled timber to the mainland, lost timber value and management and legal costs, totalling £152,340.

They are also insisting that SNH makes a public apology.

Simon Miller, Luss Estates chief executive, said: “It beggars belief that the body that is supposedly responsible for protecting our natural heritage left Inchtavannach looking like a wasteland.

‘This is a tragedy that cannot be undone for generations. To make matters worse, after behaving so recklessly and admitting they did not appreciate the impact their work would have, Scottish Natural Heritage has dragged its feet for years when asked to do the bare minimum to start to put matters right.”

Luss Estates said in a statement that they have uncovered correspondence under freedom of information rules which makes clear that the poisoning of the trees by Scottish Natural Heritage was unauthorised and that a felling licence was required.

The correspondence also suggests, says the estates, that the chemical glyphosate was used to kill the trees.

A spokesman for SNH said: “We have worked with Luss Estates and the tenant over several years on agreed management measures to improve the condition of the woodland.

“We are disappointed to have received this claim as our staff continue to work closely with Luss Estates to find workable solutions to tackling the problems with non-native trees on Inchtavannach. “We have asked our solicitors to respond to the letter, and it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time.”

Inchtavannach is designated as a site of special scientific interest and a special area of conservation.