GOINGS ON AT CULTER RAILWAY LINE
ON Saturday March 29, Ian Tallboys from Aberdeen City Council (ACC) met up with a group of Community volunteers to work on the Railway banking. Some tree-planting was essential to consolidate the recent drainage work and stabilise the banking. Ian came armed with 100 young trees (alder and willow) and the necessary tools. The volunteers came armed with energy and enthusiasm and acquired two young villagers enroute who also willingly helped. Ian writes in more detail elsewhere in this issue about his work in Conservation and partnerships with local communities. Under Ian’s direction, the Volunteers, created the foundations of a lovely grove of trees.
With time to spare and after
being suitably refreshed with coffee, tea, and wickedly energising
‘brownies’, the group attempted to restore what had been the beautiful view
of the Dee from the viewing area at our picnic bench (overlooking St. Peter’s
church yard.) A great deal of undergrowth, brambles, small shrubs, gorse, broom
and rubbish were hacked down and cleared away. There is promise of one or two
new picnic benches from ACC to add to our own (Gala funded) bench. Many people
from all over
The General Public can do a lot to help. Over the past 3 months, 140 ‘black bags’ of rubbish have been collected and removed from Lovers Walk, the Old Railway Line and surrounds. Picnickers and party goers have left beer cans, bottles, food containers and wrappers, many with contents which attract wild life which is subsequently trapped in the container. Additionally, many ‘doggy bags’ have also been retrieved from the under-growth, instead of being placed in the provided bins. Why dog owners bother to pick up the mess, then throw it in indestructible polythene bags into undergrowth is incomprehensible. It is detrimental beyond belief to wild life. We have regular offenders and as a community we must protect our environments and wildlife. Please put things into the provided bins, or better still take them home with you.
Elsewhere in this issue of ‘The Courier’ Ian writes in more detail about his work on behalf of all who love the natural parts of our environment and highlights the partnerships available to local communities to improve and maintain our natural amenities.
Another Volunteer session in co-operation with ACC is planned for the Autumn when it is hoped to open up the view from Pittengullies area of the Line, up and
down the River, plant more trees and continue the drainage maintenance.
We live in a most beautiful part of the world. Please help us maintain it.
D & A WAKEFIELD