Who we are and our vision for the future

The Dreel Burn catchment restoration was initiated in 2019 by Anstruther Improvements Association, after concerns were raised by members of the community regarding the poor state of their local burn.

Support for the initiative, both regionally and nationally, has led to its rapid development and expansion of the partners involved.

There are a range of contributors, working collaboratively with a shared aim to restore and transform the Dreel Burn to a clean, biodiverse and vibrant river, using a catchment-wide management approach.

In 2023 the Dreel Burn Investment Readiness Partnership (DBIRP) was created, that seeks to drive and facilitate public, philanthropic and private investment into the sustainable and productive landscape of the Dreel Burn and its wider catchment area.

These investments will meet the needs of nature, people, and the economy. The collaboration of partners is working together to transform the Dreel Burn and its catchment as a pioneer project, demonstrating how to achieve such a transformation. The project’s innovation and leadership will have wider positive impacts across Fife, Scotland and internationally.

The Dreel Burn initiative therefore brings together a broad and diverse collaboration of individuals, community groups, farmers and landowners, businesses, environmental land and river management specialists, nature finance advisors and research and education providers.

Collaborators are united by a desire to improve and restore the Dreel Burn and its surrounding environment and aim to achieve the following impacts:

• Dreel Burn is a reliable source of clean water, with reduced impact of climate change from floods, droughts and low flows.
• Dreel Burn offers precious green space for local residents and visitors, and a thriving natural habitat for wildlife.
• Growth in sustainable and regenerative agriculture, coastal fishing, shellfish breeding and tourism businesses in the catchment.
• Building skills and capacity locally to ensure long-term sustainability in the catchment.
• Dreel Burn will be valued as a biodiverse and vibrant river by the farming, fishing, rural and urban communities of the East Neuk, who will ensure the positive outcomes are sustainable and enduring.

Click here to learn more about the community vision for the Dreel Burn.