The Morrone Birkwood National Nature Reserve is located at the edge of the village of Braemar. At the entrance to the Birkwood there is a disused quarry from which road metal had been extracted for many years and opposite it there was an area of rough ground where a Royal Observer Corps nuclear shelter had been constructed. In recent years the whole area had become severely eroded and denuded because of its use as a temporary construction site yard for water services improvements and as an informal car park. It was therefore ideal for a Community Environmental Renewal project.
Normally land engineering work would not be contemplated in Braemar in February, but the benign weather allowed rapid and unhindered progress. The work involved reinstating the quarry and formalising the car park area by topping the eroded surface and restoring the margins. This was done by importing 1000 cubic metres of peat from a building site some 50 miles away and a substantial quantity of quarry waste. 300 native trees of Upper Deeside provenance were planted in fenced plots to screen the new car park and 50 grams of heather seed was spread to encourage the restoration of the natural cover in the quarry. A viewpoint seat, made in local stone, was created behind the top edge of the quarry with a new footpath leading to it. This affords visitors to the site the finest village view of the River Dee valley and to the Cairngorm Mountains beyond. It was the intention of the Community Council to install a suitably inscribed granite plaque to mark the establishment of The National Park. What was an eyesore and an environmental problem has been transformed into a valuable local asset.
The community council was grateful to Aberdeenshire Council Planning Department, Scottish Natural Heritage, The Cairngorms Partnership Local Biodiversity Officer, Forest Enterprise and The Heather Trust for their advice; McIntosh Plant and Fyvie Fencing for the high quality of their work; The Drum Tree Nursery for their generous support and supply of trees and Scotia Seeds for locating and supplying heather seed.
The group was also grateful for the Community Environmental Renewal Scheme financial support without which this project would not have been possible.
Contact
Braemar Community Council
Mountain Cottage
Chapel Brae
Braemar
Aberdeenshire
AB35 5YT
Telephone: 01339 741695