Friday, 23 July 2021
Surveys in Cowal to detect whether a tree disease deadly to larch has spread over the winter have uncovered 60 suspected sites of new infection. Further testing will be carried out to confirm the presence of Phytophthora ramorum at the new sites - mainly in the Kilmun, Ardentinny, south Loch Eck and Lochgoilhead areas. Positive test results will result in FLS being served more Statutory Plant He...
Friday, 23 July 2021
Forestry and Land Scotland has underlined its commitment to deer management in Perthshire with a £250k investment in a new deer larder. The new facility, which will handle around 900 carcasses every year (but which can deal with 1500), provides modern and efficient premises where venison progresses into the human food chain from the point at which the deer was culled. Deer num...
Wednesday, 21 July 2021
Forestry and Land Scotland is planning to expand its car park at Ben A’an later this year to help ease congestion at the hugely popular site. Supported by the Rural Tourism Infrastructure Fund, the works are not expected to start until Sept (after the busy summer season) and will see an increase of 26 spaces at the car park. In the interim, FLS is asking visitors to be considerate, plan ahead ...
Friday, 16 July 2021
Forestry and Land Scotland is beginning to make preparations to fell 125,000 tonnes of timber from a hillside forest at east Loch Lomond-side that could take as long as ten-years to complete. A Land Management Plan outlining the long-term proposals for Ptarmigan Forest (opposite Tarbet) – the removal of productive conifer and the retention (and regeneration) of native woodland - will be put out...
Friday, 16 July 2021
With a ‘very high’ fire risk warning in place over the weekend for Easter Ross and Moray, Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) is urging anyone thinking of visiting a forest to observe wildfire prevention guidance and avoid putting the emergency services under unnecessary pressure. The call comes in support of warnings issued by the Scottish Fires and Rescue Service and the Scottish Wil...
Monday, 05 July 2021
Forestry and Land Scotland is inviting people living in and around Auchterarder and the Ochil Hills to offer their views on the land management plan for Glen Devon and Glen Sherup. The two forest blocks, which cover roughly the same area as 1200 football pitches (1200 ha), are mostly made up of coniferous forest originally planted in the 1960s and 70s. The plan, which covers the next...
Friday, 02 July 2021
A weekend incident (26 June) which saw Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) staff verbally abused and environmental damage inflicted at a SSSI site has led FLS to call for greater public support in dealing with anti-social behaviour. A small group of young males camping at Glenmore were behaving aggressively towards FLS staff and in a way that made other members of the public feel unsafe. Their actio...
Wednesday, 30 June 2021
Environment Minister, Mairi McAllan, today (Wed 30 June) welcomed news that the aspirations of a further seven communities across Scotland are being realised through Forestry and Land Scotland’s (FLS) exemplary Community Asset Transfer Scheme (CATS). The Scheme, running since January 2017, enables geographic communities or communities of interest to purchase or lease land for projects that will...
Tuesday, 29 June 2021
Forestry and Land Scotland is surveying forestry suppliers to help it scope out the range and capacity of the sector. Focusing on tree planting stock, seed and ancillary goods, the organisation has published a Prior Information Notice (PIN) to help it gain a clear picture and detailed understanding of the size, scope, capacity of the marketplace in order to help it secure best value for its...
Monday, 28 June 2021
Forestry and Land Scotland is reminding people to stay safe when visiting forests over the summer. The call comes as FLS gears up to welcome thousands of visitors over the summer as people across the country try to catch up with their trips to the great outdoors. With staycationing on the cards and the weather looking to be good, many popular sites are going to be in high demand, so FLS ha...
Wednesday, 23 June 2021
Forestry and Land Scotland is working with industry specialists to improve forest surveying through the use of drone mounted lasers. SALTIRE - the Scottish Airborne Lidar Tool for Inventory and Resource Estimation – is based on LIDAR techniques pioneered in Finland but rarely used in the UK. It uses reflected laser pulses to build up 3D-models of vegetation and surface topography that wi...
Friday, 18 June 2021
Forestry and Land Scotland is reminding visitors to Loch Morlich that fishing is not permitted at the site. FLS took the decision last year to stop issuing fishing permits because of the increasing popularity of the loch for other water based activities. Laura McNally, for the FLS team in the area, said; “Loch Morlich is a designated bathing area for swimmers, rowers, canoeists and paddle boa...