Argyll and Bute is set to receive a boost for its net-zero goals with a new allocation of funding from the Scottish Government's Nature Restoration Fund.

The council has received £439,000 for the 2025/26 financial year, adding to the £835,000 it has received since 2021. The fund supports large-scale, multi-partner projects that aim to deliver transformative changes for nature recovery.

The funding is targeted at projects that address the main causes of biodiversity decline, such as over-exploitation, habitat loss, and invasive non-native species.

The latest round of funding will support a range of new projects, including an initiative to restore biodiversity on the council's land assets, the implementation of a Biodiversity Action Plan on local conservation sites, and work to eradicate invasive species across the public road network.

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Councillor Luna Martin, Policy Lead for Climate Change, said she was pleased to see the return of the Nature Restoration Fund, which has enabled the council to progress a wide range of initiatives that have already benefited local communities. She added: "This latest round of funding will allow us to enhance existing initiatives and deliver further projects that help Argyll and Bute's advance to net zero."

The council confirmed that major progress is already under way on a number of existing projects, including:

• School Biodiversity Fund: Provides funding for local schools to create Biodiversity Action Plans.

• Tree Planting Fund: Offers grants to local groups, schools, or community organisations to plant native trees.

• Control of invasive non-native species: A four-year plan to eradicate Japanese Knotweed, Rhododendron ponticum, and other invasive plants.