A new floating pier will help divert 60,000 tonnes of timber off a single track road in the north-west Highlands.
The structure near the village of Glenelg is the result of a collaborative venture between forest manager Scottish Woodland, timber haulier JST Services and the timber industry in the region.
In an initial trial it was used to transfer 56 truck-loads of round timber on to the 1,400-tonne ship MV Red Duchess in a single shift.
The pier will take timber from several maturing west coast forests that to date has had to go by road via the narrow Ratagan pass, which passes through areas of outstanding beauty and the village of Glenelg itself.
A feasibility study for the project received grant aid and funding was also secured from the Scottish Strategic Timber Transport Scheme to help pay for link roads from the forest to the pier.
More follows in this week’s TTJ.
