from Hunor Deak
Christmas is a truly magical time of the year when we go out of our way to do something different. We meet up with family, put up decorations all around the house and give warm greetings to strangers who we might otherwise ignore. We also spend more time thinking about our local communities and, in the spirit of Christmas, we help charities and people in need.
I wish to highlight some organisations who, throughout the whole year, have done a wonderful job in helping the people of St Andrews and wider Fife. I shall explore the work of the West Sands Ranger service and St AndReuse, introduce you to some of the amazing people behind these groups, showcase their achievements and give you some information on how you can help them out. I volunteer for both of these fantastic organisations, an addition to using their services, and I think their achievements are worth celebrating!
St AndReuse & Transition St Andrews written in collaboration with Sonja Potjewijd
The aim is twofold: to save as many things from landfill as possible and to save people money. St AndReuse, in collaboration with the University of St Andrews Environmental Networks, collect everything that people don't need and redistribute these items within the community. They accept almost any donation at their store, so you can find almost anything! The project has several wider aims, such as cutting carbon emissions and putting repaired iterms back into use. The project wants to create a circular economy in the town, combined with workshops, advice sessions and bookable events. Alongside countless volunteers, this project wouldn't be possible with Anya and Sonja. They manage the venues, set up events and pull the community together. They also started a monthly Repair Cafe and host Skillshare workshops!
The project is based in three locations: 7 Woodburn Place (where mini giveaways take place!), 40 Kinnessburn Road (open between 9-5 most weekdays for donations and occasional item-swap events) and the Reuse shop, located behind University Hall, Kennedy Gardens (open Monday-Friday, 12:30pm-2:30pm). It is open to everyone - local, students, staff and visitors! Most items are free, with the exception of adult clothes and shoes, which are 5 for £5.
"St AndReuse is an inclusive, town-wide initiative dedicated to promoting a circular economy, with the primary goal of reducing waste, cutting carbon emissions, saving resources and fostering a sense of community by encouraging the reuse, repair or upcycling of items to prevent them from ending up in landfill."
Contact Details and How to Help
How about a sustainable Christmas? Instead of buying new books or mugs, why not pick them up from Reuse? It's free! The project always needs volunteers. If you're interested, drop the team an email: transition@st-andrews.ac.uk
To find out more about what St AndReuse have to offer and upcoming events, visit: transitionsta.org/events
The West Sands Ranger Service
I have been volunteering for the Ranger Service for over a year. So, I have firsthand experience of how important they are for the town. Without them, nobody would look after the West Sands! The sands look good because of the ranger team.
The rangers perform a variety of tasks on and around the beach. They conduct daily patrols, collect waste, maintain walkways, put up fences, plant dune grass (without the rangers and the Links Trust, there would be no sand dunes by now!), check the local defibrillator stations... countless tasks!
Wildflower Meadows
The St Andrews Links is seeking to be as sustainable as possible and to continue to coexist with the natural world in a positive way. The rangers put a huge effort into setting up new habitats for birds, bats, insects, small mammals and for native plants.
To do this they have turned old car parks into wildflower meadows and have started to manage the surviving woodland around the golf courses. They remove non-native invasive species, sow seeds for new wildflowers and do limited and targeted nature-positive grass trimming. The meadows are also improved by having sheep on them. Every season Hebridean sheep are brought over from Lathockar, who merrily graze on the various plants.
My favourite part is when they put down little bumble bee nests both at the Eden Course and at the Castle Course. You wouldn't believe the amount of work they do to help insects of all type thrive!
The ranger service monitors the wildlife within these areas by doing transects for plants and butterflies in the day and having bat detectors out by night. When the bird breeding season is on, they are closely watched, and their nesting sites are protected. Birds, like the corn bunting, now have support because of the efforts of the ranger team.
The Castle Course and the Kestrel Project
The ranger service doesn't just monitor the West Sands and Links area. They also assist in taking care of the other side of town where the Castle Course is. Around the course they have helped establish wetlands, more wildflower meadows and rock piles where butterflies can rest and recharge from the heat of the sun. They also participate in a joint project with the RSPB. The Links Trust and the ranger service create habitats using wild bird seed mixture to provide nesting sites.
However, the most notable part of their Castle Course work is the kestrel box project. Sadly, Kestrels are on the decline. Since 1995 we have lost two thirds of the Scottish kestrel population. This is why the kestrel box is such a brilliant project. It offers a safe space for a kestrel pair to nest and have chicks. So far, the project has been nothing but a success. Since the introduction of the box, Kes and Mrs Kes (the kestrels) have managed to raise 30 chicks!
Bat Walks and Other Activities
The ranger service undertakes a lot of community outreach. They want you to know as much about their work as possible and to support you in better connecting with nature in your own backyard. There are regular monthly beach clean events, and the rangers do a whole plethora of educational talks and walks. I personally have taken part in wildflower meadow plantings and in a bat walk. The bat walk was special, as I had the opportunity to see the golf course at night and learn about how bats roost and find their prey around the links.
Green Shores and the Salt Marsh Restoration Project
You may recall reading about this project in a previous article of mine, so a quick recap: salt marshes used to be huge around the Eden estuary. They help prevent coastal erosion and provice a range of habitats for various animals. By the 2000s, they were mostly gone. Now the university, the links and their rangers are working together to save them. The links are project stakeholders, and they also provided a polytunnel and lots of logistical support for the project, so a huge thanks to them!
The People who Make it Work and How You Can Help
There are currently three rangers: Ranald, Jenny and Trevor. The kestrels are thriving thanks to Trevor. The bats are moving in because of Jenny and the dunes, and the wildflower meadows wouldn't exist with Ranald. My huge thanks to them for allowing me insight into some of their important work.
First and foremost, the rangers need you to respect your natural environment. There has been a problem with littering, especially dog bags, glass bottles and discarded cigarette butts. If you are enjoying the West Sands beach or surrounding area, please always clean up after yourself! This would allow the rangers more time to focus their efforts on other, more specialised, projects.
You need to keep your dog on a lead, especially around the Hebridean sheep project at Outhead. The sheep can get easily scared and sadly there have been injuries in the past.
If you would like to get involved in a beach clean, or simply learn more about upcoming events, you can can follow the West Sands Ranger Service on Facebook.
Toy Box Fundraiser
The rangers currently provide free beach toys (left on the beach), for children to use. They need a bigger wooden box to store all the toys - the plan is to have a wooden box made to look like a pirate's treasure chest! If you think you can help, or donate some more beach toys for children to enjoy, please get in touch!
Contact Details
Email: westsands@standrews.com
Telephone: 01334 466 711
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