Funding from Alyth Development Trust is set to boost volunteer work this summer to tackle a non-native plant threatening waterways and ecosystems around Alyth.
ADT’s Community Projects Fund is giving £2000 to help Bamff Wildland recruit a coordinator to manage a team of local volunteers to remove Himalayan balsam from along the Auchrannie Burn, which runs from Bamff down to the River Isla at Airlie Castle, crossing several farms along the way.
Himalayan balsam is classed by NatureScot, the Scottish Government’s nature agency, as a “priority invasive non-native species”, meaning it can be a serious threat to native species and ecosystems. The plant tends to grow by waterways and has spread considerably in recent years around the local area, meaning there is an urgent need to take action to prevent further spread.
Sophie Ramsay of Bamff Wildland explained: “Himalayan balsam is a tall annual plant, which produces large pink flowers and lots of seeds in mid to late summer. It attracts bees and other pollinators away from smaller, native flowers and tends to crowd out other plants wherever it grows. And recent studies from Stirling University show that when it dies back in the autumn it leaves few plant-roots to hold the soil together, which exacerbates riverbank erosion.
“The good news is that Himalayan balsam can be controlled using no chemicals and no specialist technical skills. But it is time consuming, and better done in groups. It is an ideal job for a local volunteer group,” she added.
The volunteer coordinator post is a part-time, fixed-term paid contract running from May until the end of August 2026. It would suit an outdoor and nature enthusiast, with good knowledge of plants, and excellent people skills, who can coordinate a team of local volunteers to pull balsam from late June to August – after the plant has emerged, and before it produces seeds.
Bamff plans to have the coordinator in post by May to begin planning and recruiting volunteers, and then do a survey in early June to identify target locations. The volunteer team will then do a series of two-hour sessions from late June to late August along as much of the Auchrannie Burn as possible.
Sophie added: “If we can, we’d love to keep the group going as long as possible so that we can remove more Himalayan balsam from the same area and beyond in the coming years, working from the top to bottom of streams across the Isla catchment.”
For more information and to apply for the post, visit: https://bamff.land/jobs/
More information on the Community Projects Fund is at: https://lovealyth.org.uk/projects/alyth-community-projects-fund/