Afton Reservoir peatland area restoration completed ahead of schedule
Work will no longer need to continue later in the year, following a pause for the bird nesting season, thanks to the quick progress made by contractor George Leslie.
The project aims to return the land to a more natural state by closing up drains which cover much of the area – using a technique called zippering.
This allows water to be held within the land, encouraging healthy peatlands and preventing erosion.
Afton Reservoir is six miles south of New Cumnock and is fed by a sizeable catchment area drawing water from all the surrounding hills.
Afton Reservoir (Image: Scottish Water) The land here drains into the reservoir, with the water taken to a treatment works in Afton before it goes on to supply much of Ayrshire.
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Daily Record
6 days ago
- Daily Record
Take the low road from Lanarkshire and try paddleboarding and canoeing at Loch Lomond
Water Safety Scotland is hosting the fourth World Drowning Prevention Day event Residents from across Lanarkshire are being encouraged to pack their swimwear and take the high road to Loch Lomond to enjoy a host of free water activities and demonstrations this Friday. Water Safety Scotland is hosting the fourth World Drowning Prevention Day event at Loch Lomond Shores, Balloch on July 25. The annual water safety event is supported by Scottish Water, RoSPA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents), Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, The Darcey Sunshine Foundation, Police Scotland, West Dunbartonshire Council, Loch Lomond & the Trossachs National Park, and SSE Renewables. The free, fun-filled, family friendly day is open to all and aims to raise awareness of water safety and drowning prevention across Scotland with a broad range of interactive and educational activities, including how to swim safely outdoors. The fourth annual event comes as new figures show there were 33 accidental drownings in Scotland in 2024, with Water Safety Scotland warning that continued vigilance is essential. Attendees will have the opportunity to: Learn life-saving tips through the Water Safety Code Watch live rescue demonstrations by SFRS and the Scottish Newfoundland Club rescue dogs Try out paddleboarding and canoeing taster sessions with Paddle Scotland and CAG Adventures Visit a range of interactive safety and information stands Carlene McAvoy, Founder of Water Safety Scotland, said: 'Every life lost to drowning is one too many. Events like World Drowning Prevention Day are vital in spreading awareness and equipping people with the knowledge they need to stay safe around water. Our focus remains on promoting the Water Safety Code in a fun, engaging, and educational way.' Scotland's Community Safety Minister, Siobhian Brown MSP, said: 'With the warmer summer weather I understand the appeal of our seas, lochs and rivers which is why water safety is vital and events like Water Safety Scotland's Water Safety Open Day are an important way of raising awareness of the dangers of our waterways, how to enjoy them safely and what to do in an emergency. 'Our Water Safety Action Plan includes a range of key steps agreed with partners, to further mitigate risks including better signage, lesson plans for pupils and improved training. I encourage everyone to know and follow the Water Safety Code: Stop and Think, Spot the Dangers, Stay Together, Stay Close and call 999 in an emergency. 'My thoughts are also with the families and friends of those affected by the recent water-related tragedies.' Peter Farrer, Chief Operating Officer at Scottish Water, added: 'We cannot over-emphasise the importance of water safety all year round, but it's particularly relevant during the summer months when people are often more likely to be around water. 'We're delighted to be involved in this event again this year, it provides a valuable opportunity for us to have water-safety conversations with people to build the vital knowledge and skills to help people stay safer in, on and around water.' 'With Scotland's abundance of coastlines, lochs, rivers and reservoirs, it's absolutely vital that everyone has the opportunity to learn basic water safety skills.' The event will run from 11am to 4pm and is open to all ages with families, school kids and community groups especially encouraged to attend. * Don't miss the latest headlines from around Lanarkshire. Sign up to our newsletters here. And did you know Lanarkshire Live is on Facebook? Head on over and give us a like and share!
The Herald Scotland
16-07-2025
- The Herald Scotland
£10m commitment to Edinburgh Seafield sewage stench delayed
'People are unhappy,' said Jim Scanlon, chair of Leith Links Community Council, who has had to take on the responsibility of collecting odour reports. 75 were received in May, compared to 12 in the same period last year, he said. 'From May and June the number of reports made through the community council website are much higher than this period last year,' he said. 'They [Scottish Water] will put that down to climate change and dry periods, but the fact that's annoying us is that they've had this £10m and nothing has been done. 'It's maybe going to cost double that now, just with rising inflation and building costs since Covid.' Mr Scanlon said that in a recent meeting with Scottish Water bosses he was told, 'they were just going to tender,' adding: 'My question to them was that if you're just tendering at the moment the process could take two or three months. In which case you'd be looking at October, November. So it's drifting into 2026. 'We find that totally unacceptable.' Scottish Water was unable to say when work would start, but it is expected to issue an update with a project timeline and a new cost estimate once a contractor is assigned to the job. The water body told The Herald it remained 'committed to investing in Seafield'. Eileen Simpson is a long-time resident of Pirniefield, one of the neighbourhoods worst affected by the 'Seafield stench'. Describing what it's like living near the plant she said: 'It's dreadful, we can't use the garden at times, we're not as bad as down near Seafield but there are pockets where it's particularly bad and sometimes it spreads away up Easter Road. 'With this commitment of £10m I think there's a bit of complacency setting in and we were just trusting them [Scottish Water]. 'People's lives are being really badly impacted by it.' Read more: Scottish Water spending had 'shortcomings' minister admits Mr Scanlon said: 'People can't go into their gardens, they have to shut their windows - it basically means when they invite friends round it's embarrassing because it just stinks and it affects people's mental health and well-being.' Ms Simpson, who also sits on the community council, said she felt there wasn't 'a practice of openness and transparency' from the public body 'in the way they should be'. She called for an emergency meeting with stakeholders to find out more about 'what's happening about the £10m' a 'transparent discussion' with the community council, Scottish Government and city council 'about the plans for the next period'. Scotland's largest waste water treatment facility, Seafield serves Edinburgh and the wider Lothians, playing a key role in the country's water infrastructure. Since 1999, it has been operated by French company Veolia under a PFI (Private Finance Initiative) contract which expires in 2029. Odour issues have persisted for decades, though are said to have eased following a £25m odour improvement plan in 2010. However complaints have continued since. The problem is worse after warm, dry spells when there is a lack of water to treat sewage and is septic by the time it arrives in the settlement tanks on the banks of the Firth of Forth. A further £10m was announced following an odour review at Seafield in 2018 and will be used to 'add additional capacity to the treatment process and ensure that odorous sewage waste is moved as quickly as possible from open areas to covered, odour extracted areas,' according to Scottish Water. Ben Macpherson, Edinburgh Northern and Leith MSP, said the delays to the project were 'disappointing' but could be attributed to 'external market challenges'. Mr Macpherson chairs the Seafield Stakeholders Group which brings together Scottish Water, Veolia, Edinburgh Council, SEPA and community representatives to discuss the operation of the plant, odour incidences and future investment. Seafield has been run by French company Veolia since 1999 under a PFI contract expiring in 2029 (Image: Scottish Water) He said: 'It's unfair that local residents have experienced unpleasant odours at times during recent weeks and months. 'While it is appreciated that this was mostly due to the exceptionally dry weather we had recently, the amount of complaints during the last months does also underline the importance of the planned investment by Scottish Water into the plant, to make sure the odour risk is meaningfully reduced as much and as soon as possible, in the near future.' The backbench SNP MSP asked the government for an update on the investment in the Scottish Parliament last month. Acting climate action minister, Alasdair Allan, told Mr Macpherson contractual obligations for the delivery of the £10m investment by Scottish Water lie with Veolia until 2029. The minister said: 'Scottish Water remains committed to delivering improvements for customers and will keep community representatives updated through the Seafield stakeholder group. 'Scottish Water is at an early stage in developing its plans to ensure a smooth transition of operational responsibility once the PFI contract expires.' Scottish Water has committed to building a new 'state-of-the-art facility' to replace Seafield after 2030 once it takes back control of the plant 'to meet the expected changing demands, population growth, replacement of equipment and new emerging technologies in wastewater treatment'. Mr Scanlon and Ms Simpson recalled a representative from the water body saying in a 2020 meeting around £100m would be spent on this project, however this figure was not confirmed by the organisation. More from our Edinburgh correspondent: 'They said £100m, it wasn't just me that heard that,' Mr Scanlon said. 'There were various other people that had heard that but when we got the minutes recently of that meeting there was no mention of it. It's disappeared.' Ms Simpson said: 'They're not being specific anymore - it was £100m, we've never seen it publicly in writing although three of four of us heard it. Everybody at the meeting heard it.' However she added it didn't matter how much was spent as long as it was 'enough to meet the needs for a state-of-the art plant for the whole of this area,' which she noted was set to grow with 2,700 new homes planned for the waterfront at Seafield, directly beside the sewage treatment facility. A Scottish Water spokesperson said: 'We are committed to investing in Seafield so that it will continue to serve as the primary treatment facility, with significant upgrades and improvements required to meet future demand and serve our customers into the next decades of this century.' 'We look forward to working constructively with the local community and stakeholders to address concerns and share progress.'
The National
15-07-2025
- The National
Highland beauty spot turned into 'disgusting mess of grey sludge'
Emergency work is being carried out after the Dell of Spey, a water feature located in the heart of Aviemore, was overcome with pollution, the Strathspey & Badenoch Herald reports. Locals took to the Aviemore & Spey Valley Community Issues Forum on Facebook to express their frustration, sharing images of the sludge. (Image: Hannah Kay Bateman, via Facebook) (Image: Hannah Kay Bateman, via Facebook) (Image: Hannah Kay Bateman, via Facebook) Another person described the stench from the spot as "absolutely honking". And another local wrote: "This must be stinky with this heat. Not really a good impression of the town in the busy tourist season." Several members also said that the "grey sludge" appeared to go "all the way down the burn to the Spey", adding that it was "disgusting". READ MORE: Historic Georgian mansion in 14,500-acre estate goes on market A spokesperson for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa), the environment watchdog, told the paper: "Sepa were made aware of this issue on Wednesday, July 9th and reported it to Scottish Water to investigate and check their sewage network. "Scottish Water found a choke in one of the sewage chambers which had been created by fats, oils and greases. "Scottish Water have been in attendance multiple times last week and over the weekend to clear the choke." The spokesperson added that when they contacted Scottish Water on Sunday, "they confirmed there was a clean up operation in progress and they would continue to provide updates". They continued: "Scottish Water are investigating to try and identify the location of where the fats, oils and grease had been put into the sewage network." The Dell of Spey was built in 1997. Water is pumped through it from a natural feed known as the Butcher's Burn. In 2019, it stopped being operational and fell into disrepair, before being restored in 2023, funded through Highland Council's revenue budget.
