SNH Area News
Strathclyde and Ayrshire Correspondent: Sarah Watts
Up close
You can learn a lot by getting up close to nature! Every year hundreds of schoolchildren get the chance to do just that through the ‘Clyde in the Classroom’ project. They take care of tiny trout as they grow from eggs into 25mm/1 inch fish (called ‘fry’), which are then released into their local river. During the seven-week project they learn about the fish, where they live and what they can do to help look after their river. “It’s a really special experience for the children,” commented Willie Yeomans of the Clyde River Foundation. “They’re present at the start of a fish’s life, something that very few people ever get to see in the wild.” ‘Clyde in the Classroom’ has worked with 245 primary schools over the last 10 years. This year it welcomed the 10,000th child to take part. Health minister Nicola Sturgeon (shown above with some of the children) attended a launch day at the Glasgow Science Centre to help celebrate. The Clyde River Foundation run the project with a grant from SNH and a mix of public/private funding. To find out more about the project click on www.
clyderiverfoundation.org and/or email
c.mcgillivray@
bio.gla.ac.uk
Past and future
In the autumn of 2009, the community of New Cumnock reminisced and shared their memories of the town and countryside. At the ‘Captured through Time’ exhibition, people discussed how the landscape around this East Ayrshire town has changed. New Cumnock has a wealth of stories. It has a proud mining history, with people having dug for coal, granite, copper and lead in the area. It has countryside that’s been celebrated by poets and local artists – for instance, Robert Burns wrote Sweet Afton about the local river. Thinking about the environment highlighted some of the recent changes, such as new renewable energy from wind farms, the changing climate and the drop in numbers of lapwings.
“Looking back has helped us to think about what’s changing today,” explained Natalie Fleming (pictured above) from the Coalfield Environment Initiative. “It highlighted the important role that the environment plays in creating a sustainable future for this area.”
See examples of the exhibition at
www.newcumnock.ea-cei.org.uk
A rosy future?
The apple orchards of the Clyde Valley once formed the largest fruit-growing area in Scotland. But what’s the future for them now? A three-year project has been working with local people and has discovered real enthusiasm and interest for the orchards. There has certainly been lots going
on. Schools have planted their own trees. Orchard owners – as part of the Clyde Valley Orchard Group – have learnt new skills to help them grow and care for their trees. And local people have taken part in events, such as tasting freshly squeezed juice, looking at different apple varieties and learning about the wildlife that lives in orchards. Is the future rosy? The orchards are unlikely ever to be big business, as too many of us buy foreign apples. But there may be other opportunities, such as making apple juice and cider, or managing community and school orchards. To find out more, click on
www.clydevalleyorchards.co.uk
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The Nature of Scotland
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