{"id":35595,"date":"2024-03-20T11:44:00","date_gmt":"2024-03-20T10:44:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/3ffb7f2a-5640-4944-b928-159c05e23e87"},"modified":"2024-03-20T12:39:23","modified_gmt":"2024-03-20T11:39:23","slug":"king-charles-iii-is-dumping-deer-bones-and-dead-trees-in-rivers-heres-how-its-saving-scotlands-waterways","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/rss_feed\/king-charles-iii-is-dumping-deer-bones-and-dead-trees-in-rivers-heres-how-its-saving-scotlands-waterways\/","title":{"rendered":"King Charles III is dumping deer bones and dead trees in rivers. Here’s how it’s saving Scotland\u2019s waterways"},"content":{"rendered":"

In an unconventional yet remarkably effective move, the royal Balmoral Estate has embarked on an innovative initiative to enhance the health of its rivers <\/p>

By John Craven\n <\/p>

Published: Wednesday, 20 March 2024 at 10:44 AM<\/p>

\n\n

While it may initially raise eyebrows, this pioneering approach is proving to be a game-changer in river restoration efforts across Scotland.<\/strong><\/p>

Salmon numbers in many Scottish waterways, such as the Allt Darrarie on the Balmoral Estate, have plummeted in recent years. Credit: Getty<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>
Dumping dead trees and deer bones into a river might at first seem a bizarre way of improving the health of its waters \u2013 but it\u2019s working on the royal Balmoral Estate.<\/p>
The trees create new habitats and improve flow on the River Muick (pronounced Mick) and the bones boost levels of phosphate, so no-one is taking the muicky! In fact, King Charles III has personally endorsed the scheme. <\/p>
It is part of the Riverwoods Initiative<\/a>, in which 18 organisations, including charities, landowners and government agencies, led by the Scottish Wildlife Trust<\/a>, are working together to restore the country\u2019s threatened rivers.<\/p>
Watch: Find out more about the fascinating work involved in the Riverwoods Initiative<\/h3>
<\/div><\/figure>Trees once lined the banks of upland rivers but, says the initiative, centuries of logging, burning and grazing left them bare. Robbed of shade in a warming climate, the rivers are heating up and losing oxygen. Action is needed before fish and other aquatic life find it impossible to survive.<\/p><blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">Working together and in harmony with nature is essential if we are to adapt to the challenges of climate breakdown and ecological collapse that threaten our food and water security.<\/p><\/blockquote>It\u2019s a fate facing many other UK rivers, with reports that none of the 40 or so in England that have protected habitats are in overall good health. Scotland is providing a blueprint which, according to James Wallace of the campaign group <a href=\"https:\/\/riveractionuk.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">River Action<\/a>, is an exemplar for community and landowner engagement. \u201cWe all need healthy rivers, abundant wildlife and clean freshwater,\u201d he says. \u201cWorking together and in harmony with nature is essential if we are to adapt to the challenges of climate breakdown and ecological collapse that threaten our food and water security.\u201d<\/p><blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">It may look haphazard but in fact it is carefully designed… what we are doing is giving the river the opportunity to work its magic.<\/p><\/blockquote>On the 20,200-hectare Balmoral Estate, where salmon numbers on the Muick have crashed in recent years, I\u2019ve been hearing more about revival plans from the factor, Richard Gledson. \u201cWe are trying to give everything in the river a better chance,\u201d he told me. \u201cWhere we haven\u2019t [tree cover], we introduce it, which stabilises the banks, gives shade and provides nutrients in the form of leaves and insects. We have actually put in fallen trees from the estate, all wind-blown with their roots, at around 70 places. It may look haphazard but in fact it is carefully designed… what we are doing is giving the river the opportunity to work its magic.\u201d<\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/c02.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/47\/2024\/03\/river-dee.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-181322\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Riverwood Initiative aims to create a network of thriving riverbank woodlands and healthy river systems across Scotland. Credit: Getty<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>The force of the water against the trees creates \u2018islands of life\u2019, held in place by heavy boulders. They provide deep, cool pools for overheated fish, hiding places from predators and spawning grounds, while at the same time diverting and improving the flow. The hope is that newly planted trees will carry on the work when they die.<\/p>In an experiment to boost phosphate levels, bundles of deer leg bones (from Balmoral\u2019s deer-management policy) are being deposited in the river. This should result in more algae, providing food for invertebrates which in turn are eaten by the fish. It\u2019s a natural way of coming to the river\u2019s rescue.<\/p>The dramatic fall in salmon numbers on the Muick is deeply worrying \u2013 and a major motivation for the project. Sixty years ago, for every 100 young salmon that left for the sea, between 30 and 40 would return. That number is down to two and three. Gledson\u2019s target is to make conditions on the Muick as ideal as possible for those that do make it back, in the hope they will produce healthy, strong offspring. <\/p>The Balmoral project should prove that river restoration is both possible and financially viable.<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Find out more<\/h3>Check out our guides to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.countryfile.com\/go-outdoors\/days-out\/scotlands-amazon-trekking-the-mighty-river-tay\">Scottish Amazon: The River Tay<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.countryfile.com\/go-outdoors\/days-out\/wild-royal-retreat-balmoral-cairngorms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Balmoral<\/a>, as well as a picturesque walk <a href=\"https:\/\/www.countryfile.com\/go-outdoors\/walks\/balmoral-castle-estate-aberdeenshire\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">around Balmoral Estate<\/a>.<\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n<hr class=\"no-tts wp-block-separator\"\/>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In an unconventional yet remarkably effective move, the royal Balmoral Estate has embarked on an innovative initiative to enhance the health of its rivers <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":35596,"template":"","categories":[1,27,57],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"4"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/king-charles-iii-is-dumping-deer-bones-and-dead-trees-in-rivers-heres-how-its-saving-scotlands-waterways.jpg",2560,1592,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/king-charles-iii-is-dumping-deer-bones-and-dead-trees-in-rivers-heres-how-its-saving-scotlands-waterways-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/king-charles-iii-is-dumping-deer-bones-and-dead-trees-in-rivers-heres-how-its-saving-scotlands-waterways-300x187.jpg",300,187,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/king-charles-iii-is-dumping-deer-bones-and-dead-trees-in-rivers-heres-how-its-saving-scotlands-waterways-768x478.jpg",768,478,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/king-charles-iii-is-dumping-deer-bones-and-dead-trees-in-rivers-heres-how-its-saving-scotlands-waterways-1024x637.jpg",800,498,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/king-charles-iii-is-dumping-deer-bones-and-dead-trees-in-rivers-heres-how-its-saving-scotlands-waterways-1536x955.jpg",1536,955,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/king-charles-iii-is-dumping-deer-bones-and-dead-trees-in-rivers-heres-how-its-saving-scotlands-waterways-2048x1274.jpg",2048,1274,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"In an unconventional yet remarkably effective move, the royal Balmoral Estate has embarked on an innovative initiative to enhance the health of its rivers","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/35595"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35596"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35595"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}