Firths are the points at which fresh water meets salt water and where land meets sea, and are hubs of activity for people and wildlife. Their diverse range of possibilities mean that Scotland's firths are constantly under pressure.

The nutrient rich mud flats that support worms, snails and shellfish and attract hungry birds are also attractive for land reclamation. Windsurfers compete with waste-dumping, coastal defences built in one area often shunt the problems of erosion further along the coast. A lack of co-ordination has been the central problem for firths. Local authorities regulate the land, as far as low tide and the boundary of the next local authority. Many sectors are involved in their development - among these the fisheries and port authorities and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, landowners, conservationists and community groups.

Facilitated by Scottish Natural Heritager, Focus on Firths is a Scotland-wide practical initiative to draw together the many elements and to begin to plan balanced, integrated management strategies based on sustainable development for each of the firths. In the Solway, Moray and Forth, partnerships have already been formed. Work is being developed in the Clyde and Tay areas. Through sharing their different visions for the area, communicating their concerns and listening to each other, partners have increased their understanding, not just of the balance of the firth, but of their own many roles and responsibilities in relation to it. In seeking to resolve conflicts and develop joint policies for the future, new balances are being struck that could ensure a sustainable future for all who use the firths.

TIBRE - TARGETED INPUTS FOR A BETTER RURAL ENVIRONMENT: USING NEW TECHNIQUES AND TECHNOLOGIES TO SOLVE PROBLEMS

A working partnership between Scottish Natural Heritage, academics, chemical and engineering industries and farmers, TIBRE aims to recommend and help to introduce new technologies and techniques that meet farmers' needs while at the same time protecting the needs of the environment. Initiatives that have been widely welcomed include:

Sunstar and soft corals

Kessock Bridge, Moray Firth

• equipment designed to spray chemicals exactly where they are needed, avoiding both over-use and an expensive drift over to hedgerows or drainage channels
• using electronic sensors to detect weeds in a crop, targeting only these with herbicides
• diagnosing plant diseases before they happen so that a single dose of treatment is needed, rather than several doses once a disease has taken hold
• mapping the soil quality of a field, so that fertilisers can be applied only where needed the following year rather than in a blanket coverage
• using combination techniques to solve problems - for example, controlling slugs through a combination of earlier and deeper sowing and using slug traps and natural parasites that target slugs, minimising the need for toxic slug pellets