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Improving the environment of River Don corridor

Representatives from community councils, recreational groups, businesses, landowners and developers are holding their first ‘River Don Communities’ network meeting on Monday 27 June in the Parkway Inn, Bridge of Don.

The meeting is being held as part of the Sustainable Urban Fringes Aberdeen (SURF) project. The project aims to improve the environment of the River Don in the city by developing a stronger identity for the river corridor, improving its environment, and helping to make it a positive feature in the lives of people that live and work beside it and visit it for its many benefits.

Representatives will hear a presentation on the scheme from SURF Aberdeen Project Manager Sinclair Laing, and learn about the open spaces study which has been commissioned from Land Use Consultants.

The study will look at the environment along the river corridor. It will assess its strengths and weaknesses, take account of how it will be affected by proposed developments, and make recommendations on how it can be improved, developed and managed in the future. A limited number of priority improvement projects will then be taken forward over the next year.

Representatives attending the meeting will have the chance to share their views on the importance of the river and its environment – and on what it has meant in the past, what it is like now and what it could be in the future.

Sinclair Laing said: “We are keen for the study to be guided and informed by community views. We are holding the meeting at the start of the study and hope that the network can provide a sounding board for development of the environment along the river and help make joint decisions about the priorities for action to improve and develop some of its open spaces.

“We’d love to hear from any community representatives, groups or those with a real interest in helping to shape the future of the environment in this area to get in touch. They can do this either as a part of this network or though outreach sessions we are running.”

The SURF Aberdeen project is part of the European North Sea Region Inter Regional (Interreg) funded SURF Project, in which Aberdeen City Council is the lead partner.

SURF Aberdeen is being managed by a partnership steering group, which brings together officers from the City Council, SEPA, Aberdeen Greenspace, Forestry Commission Scotland and the River Don Trust.

For more information on SURF and SURF Aberdeen, visit the website at www.sustainablefringes.eu.

For more information contact Sinclair Laing, email SiLaing@aberdeencity.gov.uk, tel (01224) 522725.

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