Funding boost to tackle Argyll rainforest threat

An assault on a foreign invader to our shores is about to be stepped up thanks to government funding.

 

Purple-flowered Rhododendron ponticum is a familiar and long-established sight in the Argyll countryside, but its proliferation places our native Atlantic rainforest under serious threat.

 

The award of £214,000, which comes from the Scottish Government's Nature Restoration Fund, will assist Argyll and the Isles Coast and Countryside Trust (ACT) in tackling the problem.

 

The money will be used to improve woodland around Kilmory and at Glenan Woods in Cowal.

 

Both are prime woodland sites but are over-run with invasive Rhododendron ponticum which is crowding out native tree and lower plant species.

 

The cash will enable the control and management of Rhododendron at these sites, while supporting the appointment of ACT's Ranger team and providing a polytunnel for ACT-run MAKI Pups outdoor nursery.

 

ACT development manager Julie Young said: 'Rhododendron ponticum, lovely as its summer blossom maybe to some, is a significant non-native invasive plant in our remnant rainforests in Argyll.

 

Thanks to the Nature Restoration Fund, ACT is able to remove this barrier to rainforest restoration in two Argyll strongholds. As ACT has demonstrated elsewhere, this will allow woodland biodiversity to flourish and make it easier for us all to get in amongst the woods, learn about them, exercise more, and just feel better from being in such a wonderful green space.'

 

Leader of Argyll and Bute Council Robin Currie said: 'The woodland at Kilmory Estate is an important natural asset to Argyll and Bute and it is vital we do everything we can to conserve its natural resources. Over the last few months we have brought many parts of the estate back to life through a variety of climate-friendly projects, including the creation of an award-winning outdoor learning centre and a biomass boiler which produces heat using local timber.

 

'The announcement of this funding from the Scottish Government's Nature Restoration Fund to clear invasive species will greatly benefit the biodiversity of the woodland and will complement new native planting around the estate that we have agreed in partnership with other organisations, such as ACT and Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE).'

 

The Nature Restoration Fund supports a range of projects aimed at increasing the biodiversity and environmental value of land and sea, with a focus on habitats and species, and supporting green skills, training and jobs where possible. Through this approach successful projects will contribute to the 'green recovery'.

 

The ACT project Rewilding Argyll’s Rainforest is one of 54 projects across Scotland to share the additional £5 million in this round of the Nature Restoration Fund.