The Ayrshire & Arran Woodland Strategy has won a top planning award for its work to stimulate woodland planting.
The strategy, one of the first Scottish local forestry initiatives to receive backing from the Scottish Executive, was among seven winners in the annual Scottish Awards for Quality in Planning.
In addition, it is also attracting interest from many quarters, including Europe, due to its reputation for integrating forestry planning with wider land use planning. Organisations have travelled from Ireland and Turkey to examine its work with a view to replicating it in their own countries.
The initiative aims to stimulate the planting of well-designed woodlands which will produce high-quality timber; restore landscapes damaged by industrial activity; and diversify the farmed landscape.
