Shifting 30,000 tonnes of earth and re-meandering river boosts Highland town economy
The river restoration work could see a town benefit from a £5.6m boost
A four-year effort to re-meander part of a river and restore biodiversity around it has transformed the economic prospects of a Highland town, conservationists have said.
The River Peffery, which runs into the Cromarty Firth, has a history of flooding areas along its course, including the town of Dingwall. That risk has long constrained business opportunities in the town, with development curtailed by planning concerns.
However, after shifting some 30,000 tonnes of earth and excavating 350m of new river channel, a team from the River Peffery Catchment Project (RPCP) claims the restoration work is projected to generate more than ten times its £0.5 million cost by 2065—an estimated £5.6 million return.
Planning applications at Dingwall Business Park had previously been refused because of flood risk, to the frustration of local entrepreneurs. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) and the Highland Council’s flood team assessed the site’s flood bund as unsuitable as a formal defence, while upgrading it was expected to cost millions with little prospect of funding.
Instead, the RPCP, led by Lockett Agri-Environmental, has spent the past four years developing an alternative approach based on natural flood management.
With the work completed in early 2026, businesses have now begun to establish themselves at the park.
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One of them, Fraser Mackenzie Electrical Contractors, had been waiting years for approval.
“We’ve been waiting five years for planning permission and it is great to finally get the go-ahead to start work,” Mr Mackenzie said.
“We’re building a new office, workshop and storage facility which will enable the business to grow and expand.”
Richard Lockett, of Lockett Agri-Environmental, said future applications for less vulnerable developments, such as offices and general industry, are now far less likely to be hindered by flood risk.
One of the most significant elements of the scheme took place at nearby Dochcarty Farm, where an entire stretch of the river was re-meandered and a new floodplain created.
Mr Lockett said: “The Business Park project wouldn’t have got off the starting blocks if it wasn’t for farmer Garry Campbell and his family. Garry could see from the start how restoring the river would enhance wildlife, rejuvenate the Business Park and help Dingwall. He told me how excited he was to see an otter in one of the new ponds. Things like that are the icing on the cake.”
The river project also included land owned by government agencies, including Forestry and Land Scotland, which carried out extensive ‘forest to bog’ restoration work in the upper catchment. NatureScot, who own the Ben Wyvis National Nature Reserve, have undertaken peatland restoration works, blocking old drains and repairing eroding peat hags which has helped slow the flow of water from the upper reaches of the catchment.
The project reflects a wider shift towards nature-based solutions. A similar initiative is under way in the Borders through the Eddleston Water Project, led by Professor Chris Spray, a former director of Sepa.
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The scheme, backed by the Scottish Government, is one of the country’s most prominent examples of restoring rivers to their natural course to reduce flooding.
Professor Spray said there was growing interest in such approaches.
“The challenge is to do this at landscape scale so that it has an impact,” he said.
“That’s what we’ve been trying to do at Eddleston.”
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