Recognising the Flowing Forward - Restoring Galloway's Rivers Programme

That the Parliament recognises what it sees as the vital work of the Galloway Fisheries Trust (GFT) in improving water quality and restoring freshwater habitats across Dumfries and Galloway and the South Scotland region, through its ambitious programme, Flowing Forward - Restoring Galloway’s Rivers; notes that this evidence-based initiative spans six river catchments, the Luce, Bladnoch, Cree, Water of Fleet, Kirkcudbrightshire, Dee and Urr, and aims to improve biodiversity, promote nature recovery, re-establish natural processes, create habitat complexity and increase resilience to climate change; commends the dedicated team of staff, including a Habitats and Climate Resilience Officer, Project Manager for Nature Restoration and Ecologist, who work in partnership with communities, stakeholders and organisations to deliver a wide range of restoration projects; celebrates the programme’s sub-projects, such as peatland restoration, riparian tree planting, wetland creation, river channel reconnection and coastal burn restoration; acknowledges the programme’s alignment with national and regional strategies, including the Scottish Wild Salmon Strategy and the Dumfries and Galloway Local Biodiversity Action Plan; congratulates GFT on its leadership in delivering nature-based solutions that benefit both the environment and the area's communities, and wishes all at GFT well for the future.