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'A rallying cry for Scotland to take action now' – Free screening in Wick and Helmsdale of environmental documentary about river woodlands


By David G Scott

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Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), female, on its migration up river to spawn, in an Environment Agency fish trap (which is a salmon ladder with gates that the staff open once they have recorded the fish).
Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), female, on its migration up river to spawn, in an Environment Agency fish trap (which is a salmon ladder with gates that the staff open once they have recorded the fish).

A new feature-length documentary, shows how Scotland’s rivers – and the landscapes they run through – could be re-energised by regenerating river woodlands.

Three years in the making, the film Riverwoods, is narrated by Peter Capaldi and shot by the award-winning filmmaking team at Scotland: The Big Picture.

A rallying cry for Scotland to take action now, the film illustrates the impoverished state of Scotland’s river catchments by telling the story of the iconic "king of fish", the salmon and its perilous state.

Over many centuries, the loss of natural woodlands alongside rivers has profoundly changed their ability to support the salmon runs that once flourished.

Today, many of Scotland’s rivers run through bare, treeless glens, reflecting the ecological decline that we have come to accept as normal.

The three tributaries of the River Affric are bare and treeless.
The three tributaries of the River Affric are bare and treeless.

Atlantic salmon are a modern-day canary in the mine, embodying all of the challenges woven into the climate and biodiversity crises. They are susceptible to almost every human impact – aquaculture, over-fishing, pollution, water abstraction and artificial barriers, such as large dams and weirs and their reliance on cold, clean water that makes them increasingly vulnerable to changing climatic conditions.

And many of Scotland’s salmon rivers are getting warmer, due in part, to the absence of the woodlands that once shaded and nourished them.

Scotland: The Big Picture, alongside a wide range of other organisations, is calling for a nationwide effort, involving public and private sector landowners, land managers, farmers and foresters, to restore Scotland’s river woodlands at a ‘catchment scale’.

Why are river woodlands special – and needed?

Native trees and shrubs next to rivers, streams and lochs perform a range of vital functions: they provide shade, to regulate the temperature of the water; their roots stabilise riverbanks and a rich tapestry of vegetation locks away carbon, filters pollution and slows run-off.

This largely untold story is revealed in the new documentary film – Riverwoods – which is being shown, free of charge, at venues around Scotland over the next few months.

Local Riverwoods screening details:

March 21 at 7.30pm in Lyth Arts Centre.

Apr 4 at 7.30pm in Timespan, Dunrobin Street, Helmsdale.

Free tickets can be reserved here: www.scotlandbigpicture.com/events


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