FLS Angus Glens Programme

FLS Angus Glens Programme

fls er angusglens sept2023 photo 93Since purchasing Glen Prosen in November 2022 we've been working to integrate it into our existing land holdings in Glen Doll, Glen Isla and Glen Markie. The new acquisition is the missing piece of the jigsaw that links these and other areas of public land together.

Our broad aims on purchasing the estate were in line with the Scottish Government's commitment to nature recovery, climate resilience and people's health and wellbeing. Now in public ownership, Glen Prosen forms the centre of approximately 10,500ha of public land, giving us the opportunity to work with other public bodies and neighbouring landowners to achieve landscape-scale habitat restoration in the Cairngorms National Park.

It is a large project that will take time to deliver, but it is of crucial importance having been named in the Programme for Government 2023/24.

The following update shows our aims, the progress we've made so far, and what comes next.

Programme aims

Our Angus Glens project aims to deliver an ecosystem fit for the future in the southern Cairngorms. We need to:

Restore nature

  • Increase native woodland cover
  • Improve river health
  • Restore peatland habitats
  • Support a variety of species

Improve climate resilience

  • Reduce the risk of flooding
  • Increase resilience to wildfires
  • Enhance the efficiency and capacity of carbon stores

Benefit people

  • Provide opportunities for education and skills development
  • Promote responsible recreation
  • Ensure our actions benefit the local community and economy

A roadmap showing the FLS Angus Glens timeline. Winter 2022/23: 3,500 hectares of land acquired in Glen Prosen. Spring 2023: Staff recruitment. Breeding bird surveys. Summer 2023: Habitat mapping. Land management planning begins. Autumn 2023: Scoping of plans. Partnership engagement and expressions of interest. Winter 2023/24: Development of draft plans. Harvesting windblow and ongoing deer management. 2023-24 Phase 1: Planning and set-up. Spring/summer 2024: public consultation on draft land management plan and second year ecological surveys. Autumn 2024: Early river restoration works start in Glen Prosen and Glen Doll. Winter 2024/25: Final detailed land management plan developed and consulted on. Spring 2025: Submit land management plan to Scottish Forestry. 2025-2035 Phase 2: Habitat restoration at scale. 2035-2235 Phase 3: Benefits realisation

What have we done?

We have been working with our neighbours, the local community and many partners to build our Angus Glens programme of activity. This includes:

Land management plan consultation
We've held nine public events, two online surveys, and numerous consultation meetings to help us better understand the priorities, opportunities and issues of local stakeholders and communities.

Broad support for more native woodland creation was a common theme, alongside increasing biodiversity and river restoration. We're now working on detailed plans that seek to address issues raised around deer fencing, access and fire resilience. 

The final plans will be available early in 2025, with a third round of public consultation in February and March of that year. 
Scoping consultation feedback word cloud showing top 50 most commons words in response to the question: what is special about the forest and land in Glen Doll and Glen Prosen to you? Words are: natural, walking, fauna, unique, habitat, scenery, remote, forestry, wild, nature, accessible, forest, enjoy, opportunity, tracks, environment, diverse, corrie, angus, walks, special, fauna, unspoilt, trees, wildlife, access, local, people, outstanding, managed, doorstep, beauty, views, parking, forests, stunning, land, benefit, scenic

Above: what Glen Prosen and the Angus Glens mean to us, our partners, and the local community.
Estate buildings

We're pursuing promising opportunities with the wider community and businesses to put the built assets to sustainable use, creating new jobs, exciting partnerships, and providing an income for FLS. 

Proposals on the table include a tree nursery, an education offering, a manufacturing business, a recreation proposition, and a field studies centre. We hope to be able to share this information by the end of 2024. Two of the estate houses are currently occupied by tenants.

Natural capital

We intend to seek ‘green finance’, which is private investment in nature-based solutions (such as carbon storage and sequestration, flood risk reduction, enhanced wellbeing, and biodiversity recovery).

This is an emerging area for which policy and standards are still being developed, and Angus Glens can contribute to piloting such approaches. We will also see revenue generated from the on-site hydro scheme, venison sales, leases of estate buildings and land, and via partnership opportunities. 

Recruitment

We recruited a Programme Manager and Planning Forester who both started in August 2023. In 2024, we've recruited a Wildlife Ranger and Craftsperson to work in the Angus Glens. 

Deer management

We're working to reduce the deer population across the national forest and land in the Angus Glens. This includes taking on deer management for NatureScot in Corrie Fee National Nature Reserve which lies between Glen Prosen and Glen Doll.

We're selling venison into the food market from deer culled on the estate.

In conjunction with statutory stakeholders such as neighbouring landowners, South Grampian Deer Management Group, NatureScot and local communities, we are now revising our deer management plan to incorporate deer fencing where necessary. This will help us achieve our objective to enable habitat recovery and new native woodland creation.

Operations

We've completed harvesting operations to clear some of the windblown areas in Glen Prosen, providing better access for future work. Our next harvesting operations in Glen Prosen will commence mid-2025.

We're in discussions with Angus Council and the Timber Transport Forum regarding an upgrade to the public road to allow for safer haulage of timber out of the glen. 

Windblow clearance will begin in Glen Doll in autumn 2024 to re-open the White Water trail.

Surveys

We've undertaken a range of surveys to inform our land management planning, including soils, breeding birds, habitats, and archaeology. 

Throughout 2024 we're continuing to carry out ecological surveys and establish baseline monitoring, including: 

  • fixed point photography
  • drone footage
  • peatland survey
  • river restoration and freshwater habitats
  • natural regeneration tree survey
  • wildlife camera trapping

A collage of three images. Top left: logs stacked by a road. Top right: a close up of red toned plants. Bottom: an underwater shot of a fish.

Harvesting operations commenced in 2023 to begin clearing windblow. Our surveys are helping us to identify the special flora and fauna that call the glen home.

Learn more about Angus Glens

 

Get in touch

If you would like further information or have any questions about this plan, please contact:

Email: angusglens@forestryandland.gov.scot