Richard Jeffries and Roy Richardson Improving Scottish Rivers Proposals for delivery

Urban improvements From this… …to this.

Rural improvements From this… …to this.

Varied habitats – pools, riffles, etc Good for Ecology Good for land management Natural width low-flow channels keep the river bed clear of fine sediment. Less maintenance needed. Flood water storage within river corridor River corridor Agricultural field Varied habitats – trees / scrub

Working within the landscape

Catchment plan Healthy rivers Ecologically unhealthy

Arable – avoid Pasture – investigate potential Ecology  Land use  Urban  Healthy sections Unhealthy sections Area at risk of flooding River corridor Urban area Focus areas Urban areas - flood risk? Land use River corridor

Working within the landscape

High value land: no restoration here Channel moving around – issues with drain maintenance Regeneration opportunity Space for a functioning river Local factors & opportunities Possibility of small-scale works 2 metre statutory buffer

Ecology Land use Urban Restore to reduce flood risk Less maintenance Better habitats Stepping stone restoration River plan No change

 Land not used for agriculture  Old channel still present Rural restoration opportunity

 £22,000 from SEPA  Total value £48,000 low cost active restoration Logie burn

Urban restoration partnership Funderamount Water Environment Fund£100,000 Total UK£60,000 Aberdeen Greenspaces Trust Ltd£62,500 Aberdeen Forward£50,000 North East Local Biodiversity Action plan £2000 Aberdeen City Council£15500 Aberdeen City Council – in kind contribution £30000 Total£320000

Small scale stepping stone example

Catchment plan River plan

Q & A

Discussion questions Is improvements based on constraints the right approach? Improvements: where might benefits outweigh costs? Constraints: where might costs outweigh benefits?