A restoration project in Scotland has already withstood its first test and is expected to continue paying dividends for nearby communities by improving water quality.
As detailed by Water Magazine, CBEC Eco Engineering used nature-based solutions on the Kinnordy Estate to restore a 500-meter stretch of the Quharity Burn. Funded by NatureScot's Nature Restoration Fund, the project looked to make the area more resilient to the effects of the rising global temperature as well as improve habitat quality for native creatures.
CBEC began the "Stage 0" design phase in 2022 after a study the previous year determined which restoration spots would most benefit the river and surrounding floodplain. Construction began in 2023, with CBEC installing eight large wooden structures that redirected the burn into the floodplain through an excavated channel.
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Electrical and wiring 🔌 "The design is sustainable and, once the vegetation has fully re-established, will require no ongoing maintenance or management," CBEC project manager Alison Wilson told Water Magazine. "It is a unique opportunity to employ a nature-based approach to fully reinstate a 'wandering' channel network through a floodplain that has been disconnected from its river for some time."
With construction complete, Scottish Water will monitor the Loch of Lintrathen — which provides water to nearby Angus — to ensure the project didn't release silt into the water source. In the long term, the restoration should result in a cleaner water supply.
"This is perhaps the first project of its kind upstream from a drinking water reservoir that has the potential to naturally improve the water quality going into the loch through river restoration activities," CBEC design director Hamish Moir told Water Magazine.
The engineering firm wrapped up the restoration in 2023, and not a moment too soon. One month after completion, Storm Babet lashed Scotland with 26 inches of rain, resulting in extensive flooding. However, Moir shared that the design was "remarkably resilient."
What's more, as restoration initiatives elsewhere have done, the Quharity Burn project is helping the native ecosystem rebound, supporting biodiversity — and therefore public health. According to The Lancet, high biodiversity generally reduces the risk of disease spread.
"One only needs to look at the photos to see the difference this has made," Kinnordy Estate owner Antony Gifford told Water Magazine. "... That it can support flood resilience downstream and bring benefits to the wider catchment is truly amazing. I hope that we can replicate the success at other sites on the burn in the future."
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