The woodland, owned by West Lothian Council, is located to the north-west of Uphall on the urban fringe, providing a green wedge between adjacent housing and agricultural land.
It is c13 hectares and contains some dense woodland, up to 60 years old, which was predominantly hawthorn scrub woodland that had naturally regenerated over the last 25-40 years. There were also areas of open grassland.
Whilst the site had offered informal recreation to local residents to enjoy peace and quiet or exercise their dogs away from traffic, it had increasingly become more overgrown, raising issues around safety and accessibility including:
Paths in a state of disrepair due to encroachment of vegetation and drainage issues
Areas of the site being very dark due to dense foliage, particularly hawthorn, blocking out natural sunlight
Dense tree cover, considered to be detrimental to local biodiversity
Anti-social behaviour, particularly motorcycle/quad bike use
Project achievements:
834m of paths upgraded
12 hectares of woodland enrichment
Erection of 2 interpretation boards
Installation of 2 benches
Access barriers and controls to mitigate the problems with motorbikes whilst still allowing disabled/less able bodied and equestrian access
Returning the walking surface to its original width, widening verges, improving drainage at two points and clearing a 5m “tunnel” of overgrown vegetation along the grass ride path to improve site access
Thinning and removal of non-native species to increase natural light and improve biodiversity
2 areas of open ground allocated for wildflower enrichment
