A two-year project has started near the iconic Glenfinnan viaduct in Scotland to enhance natural habitats and to compensate for biodiversity that has been lost during safety-critical tree and vegetation management works.

Network Rail Scotland is committing £329,000 for Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS), manages the land, to use in what is the most ambitious biodiversity enhancement project ever to take place on the railway in Scotland. The area forms part of the dramatic setting of the Glenfinnan viaduct, which can be seen by passengers travelling on the Line between Fort William and Mallaig and is within Scotland’s endangered Atlantic rainforest zone.

Work will be carried out in two phases across approximately 200 hectares to protect, restore, and expand rainforest and peatland habitats, and include:

• using hand tools and equipment to remove non-native species across pinewood and peatland habitats, including invasive species that threaten the native habitats (Phase 1);
• installing deer fencing on the knoll near the railway at Drumferm to protect and expand oak woodland (Phase 1);
• determining if enrichment planting is required to supplement natural regeneration by surveying the amount of native woodland expansion at Callop Woods (Phase 1);
• installing fencing to protect areas of new pinewood expansion and existing habitats at Callop woods (Phase 1&2);
• carry out repairs and replacement of fencing that protects a designated Atlantic oak woodland at Kinlochmoidart, which is part of Scotland’s rainforest (Phase 2);
• enrichment planting of native woodland at Kinlochmoidart (Phase 2);
• possible enrichment planting of oak, rowan, birch, and other pinewood species to support regeneration and expansion of Callop woods (Phase 2);
• maintenance and enhancement of wet woodland along Callop river will be carried out as an ongoing task.

In the short term, threats to vulnerable and internationally important woodland and peatland habitats. In the long term the project will deliver biodiversity benefits, increase carbon storage, and enhance climate resilience by helping to protect, enhance, and expand these unique habitats for future generations.

Alex Hynes, managing director of Scotland’s Railway, said: “We’re delighted to be partnering with Forestry and Land Scotland and contributing towards the vital work being carried out to protect and enhance Scotland’s unique natural environment.

“This project will allow us to balance the removal of trees and vegetation elsewhere on the railway on a scale that would not be possible by replanting purely within our own boundaries.

“Rail is already one of the greenest forms of transport and we are committed to working to reduce our industry’s impact on the environment through further electrification of our network and also by supporting innovative projects like this one.”

Simon Hodgson, chief executive of FLS, said: “We are looking forward to working with Network Rail Scotland over the next two years to deliver this important pilot project within Scotland’s Atlantic Rainforest zone.

“This support from Network Rail is helping to supplement our national rainforest restoration programme, funding activity to protect and enhance threatened habitats. Work has already started on site, and we look forward to seeing biodiversity at Glenfinnan flourish into the future as a result.

“The longer-term objective is to restore ecosystem processes over 10 years which will support full habitat recovery and ongoing resilience. Thanks to these initial interventions funded by Network Rail, as well as ongoing management and maintenance undertaken by us, we are on track to achieve that goal.”