A project that will see 100,000 trees planted in North Ayrshire has officially started development in Kilbirnie.

Twelve hectares of new woodlands are being created at Lochshore Park next to Kilbirnie Loch with over 17,000 trees being planted on the site.

This marks phase one of North Ayrshire Council’s Lochshore Masterplan with more trees to be planted in the coming years to make a total of 108,000.

Councillor Tony Gurney, cabinet member for economy and climate change, said: “That’s a huge amount and will go some way towards us reaching our net-zero target by 2030.

“The planting of trees on this scale has other wider benefits such as employment and training opportunities, physical activity opportunities and improved biodiversity.

“We are looking at other larger-scale sites but there will be opportunities for the community to get involved on a smaller, more manageable scale.

“This is a really important element of our tree-planting strategy and it will be great to work with more and more groups as we look to reach our target by 2030.”

The Kilbirnie woodlands will be maintained by locals and supported by site-based community engagement officer, Rebecca Ramage of the Conservation Volunteers’ – a UK-wide group that cares for green spaces.

As part of the Central Scotland Green Network area, the woodlands have been designed and managed for the council by charity Green Action Trust with Scottish Woodlands being contracted to do the initial ground preparation.

With a mixture of biodiverse trees in the woodlands, the species of trees being planted has been decided based on how suitable they will be for the ground.

The Lochshore Masterplan has already resulted in the development of a £4.2 million Lochshore Park Hub and active travel routes.