£5 million for precious habitat.
More than 1,200 hectares of degraded rainforest habitat are now
on the road to recovery thanks to Scottish Government funding.
Almost £5 million has already been invested in rainforest
restoration since 2023 and a further £5 million for ongoing
restoration efforts was allocated as part of the draft 2025/26
Budget.
Scotland's rainforest is a type of coastal temperate rainforest
which is incredibly rare and as internationally significant as
tropical rainforest.
Scottish Government funding is already supporting the work to
protect and enhance the important habitat by:
- Recruiting apprentices and new entrants to the industry to
support removal of non-native species like Rhododendron and
regenerating conifers.
- Regenerating and reconnecting ancient designated Caledonian
pine forests and other surviving rainforest remnants in Loch
Arkaig
- Collaborative working with Forestry Land Scotland, Argyll
Countryside Trust and the Woodland Trust to restore 2,000
hectares in the Knapdale priority rainforest area
Rural Affairs Secretary welcomed the rainforest
restoration work being done by a range of partners across the
country during a visit to Sallochy Forest, a site managed by
Forestry Land Scotland.
Ms Gougeon said:
“Scotland is home to its own temperate rainforest boasting a
variety of rare species and habitats. We are already delivering
work to protect and expand this precious environment and this
additional funding of £5 million will help us to go further
faster.
“Protecting our rainforests is essential to tackling our
biodiversity crisis but is also an important step in helping
Scotland on its journey to net zero by 2045.
“Rainforest restoration needs to be done at a landscape scale, in
partnership with organisations, landowners and land managers, and
this funding will help to develop and deliver a range of
collaborative projects.”
Background
Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS), a member of Alliance for
Scotland's Rainforest, is responsible for one third of Scotland's
temperate rainforest area with 20 years of experience of
rainforest restoration.
Working to Scottish Forestry's Rainforest Strategy, FLS is
supporting the delivery of Scottish Government aspirations and
focusing on agreed priority areas and develop partnerships and
collaborative action.
Over the past two years, £2 million worth of FLS' contracts to 16
SMEs in rural west coast communities have helped build capacity
within the sector and create 5 apprenticeships.
In 2023 enhancements to the Forestry Grant Scheme were made that
support land managers to deliver more native woodland restoration
and expansion, including rainforest. The enhancements were:
- increased grant support for natural regeneration,
- higher grant support for native woodland planting available
in Argyll,
- improved support for landscape-scale deer management, and
funding towards community or shared use larders,
- improved support for rhododendron clearance and follow-up
treatment.
Since 2015, Scottish Forestry has committed £6 million of grant
funding for the management of existing native woodlands within
the rainforest zone.
Over £3.7 million has also been invested in rainforest
restoration to date through the Nature Restoration Fund.
Scottish Government has also funded over £5 million of rainforest
restoration work by FLS since 2022.
