Local Mearns Cllr George Carr has congratulated Catterline residents who have come together following severe land slips during the wet winter of 2012.
The sea cliffs in front of North Row in the village suffered a worrying slip which came perilously close to the road in front of their houses. This was actually the latest land slip, which also blocked their road to the beach for several months.
Following extensive consideration of engineering solutions and costings, it became abundantly clear that a conventional solution would be extremely expensive.
Villagers decided to take destiny into their own hands after deciding that this latest slip was the last straw .
Cllr Carr said "going back in time held the key to address the problem and old drains and ditches which had become neglected and forgotten were painstakingly restored and brought back into use. Working with students from Glasgow University a project was developed to drain as much of the natural spring water off the slopes and into the sea. Planting has also taken place to add stability to the slopes".
"While nothing can ever be guaranteed, I am sure that the efforts of the community have significantly lessened the risk of land slips and it is a joy to see the amount of water being piped off the slopes. I also think the lessons from Catterline are important in a wider Aberdeenshire context and can be equally deployed to other communities where similar risks exist."
