A SOUTH Ayrshire burn is to undergo major restoration work as part of a bid to tackle pollution in the water.

Ayrshire Rivers Trust has received £16,775 from The Scottish Salmon Company to tackle excessive amounts of silt in the Brockloch Burn near Maybole.

The burn's habitat supports a selection of nationally important fish species including Atlantic salmon, brown trout, lamprey and European eels.

Pollution affecting the water quality, and erosion caused by unrestricted livestock access, have combined to release excessive amounts of silt into the water, smothering the environment that fish use to spawn.

The target for the project is to improve the bankside and the in-stream habitat of the burn, whilst also reducing the amount of silt entering the watercourse, by erecting fencing on an 880-metre stretch to limit livestock access.

Tavish Scott, chief executive of Salmon Scotland, said: "Salmon farmers have a shared desire to address the decades-long decline in wild salmon populations – one of Scotland’s most iconic species.

"Wild salmon populations across the world have decreased over the past century, and it is vital that we rely on good science to help focus our attention on the real issues that are affecting wild salmon and trout populations.

"Habitat loss and rising river temperatures have been identified as major pressures on wild salmon and trout, which return to freshwater rivers to breed.

"By supporting community-led projects to restore our rivers we are playing our part in reversing the decline in wild salmon numbers and identifying solutions that not only work here in Scotland, but globally."

Stuart Brabbs, manager and senior scientific officer with the Ayrshire Rivers Trust, said: "With wild salmon numbers declining across Scotland, it is essential that river managers improve freshwater habitats wherever possible to ensure that adults returning from the sea to spawn have the best chance of success.

"This funding will enable the Ayrshire Rivers Trust to address factors limiting salmon production within the Brockloch Burn.

"This restorative approach should not only increase salmon productivity within this burn but also benefit other freshwater species too."