The South Esk catchment and Angus Glens have been confirmed as one of nine exemplar areas under the Scottish Biodiversity Delivery Plan 2024 to 2030. The exemplars are intended to pioneer and scale up approaches that speed nature recovery, building on earlier programmes and successful work already happening on the ground.

NatureScot, working with SEPA, Forestry and Land Scotland, Scottish Forestry and Scottish Water, will prioritise and support landscape-scale projects across Scotland, focusing additional effort and resources on the exemplar areas.

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As an exemplar, partner agencies will prioritise staff time for governance and delivery; make best use of existing funding streams for restoration; and tackle barriers such as deer management, nature finance, control of invasive non-native species and regulatory obstacles. They will also work to maximise delivery of Nature 30 sites and Nature Networks, and strengthen climate resilience at catchment scale, benefitting drinking water supplies. Projects that reduce flood risk, water scarcity and wildfire risk, and protect water quality will be prioritised.

Next steps include developing a project plan to set out how agencies can best support the South Esk catchment and Angus Glens initiative. A new national community of practice will be established in 2026 to share learning and experience with other exemplars and landscape-scale projects across Scotland.