Levenhall Links
Encyclopedia
Musselburgh
Musselburgh is the largest settlement in East Lothian, Scotland, on the coast of the Firth of Forth, six miles east of Edinburgh city centre.-History:...
, East Lothian
East Lothian
East Lothian is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and a lieutenancy Area. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Scottish Borders and Midlothian. Its administrative centre is Haddington, although its largest town is Musselburgh....
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, UK; it is adjacent to Musselburgh Racecourse
Musselburgh Racecourse
Musselburgh Racecourse, known until the 1990s as Edinburgh Racecourse, is a horse racing venue located in the Millhill area of Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland, UK, close to the River Esk....
, Morrison's Haven
Morrison's Haven
Morrison's Haven is a harbour at Prestongrange, East Lothian, Scotland, UK, on the B1348, close to Levenhall Links, Prestongrange Industrial Heritage Museum, Prestonpans, and Prestongrange House.-History:...
and Prestongrange Industrial Heritage Museum
Prestongrange Industrial Heritage Museum
The Prestongrange Industrial Heritage Museum is an industrial heritage museum at Prestongrange between Musselburgh and Prestonpans on the B1348 on the East Lothian coast, Scotland UK....
.
Levenhall Links is 134 hectares of land reclaimed from the sea by building a sea wall and pumping of large amounts of pulverised fuel ash into a number of ash lagoon
Lagoon
A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,...
s. This infill
Infill
Infill in its broadest meaning is material that fills in an otherwise unoccupied space. The term is commonly used in association with construction techniques such as wattle and daub, and civil engineering activities such as land reclamation.-Construction:...
site for fly ash
Fly ash
Fly ash is one of the residues generated in combustion, and comprises the fine particles that rise with the flue gases. Ash which does not rise is termed bottom ash. In an industrial context, fly ash usually refers to ash produced during combustion of coal...
from the coal fired Cockenzie Power Station
Cockenzie power station
Cockenzie power station is a coal-fired power station in East Lothian, Scotland, capable of co-firing biomass. It is situated on the south shore of the Firth of Forth, near the town of Cockenzie and Port Seton, east of the Scottish capital of Edinburgh. The station has dominated the local...
has been partially restored and landscaped, shallow pools for wading bird
Wader
Waders, called shorebirds in North America , are members of the order Charadriiformes, excluding the more marine web-footed seabird groups. The latter are the skuas , gulls , terns , skimmers , and auks...
s have been created, and the area has become a popular site for birdwatchers, as well as an informal golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
practice area. The Royal Musselburgh Golf Club
Royal Musselburgh Golf Club
The Royal Musselburgh Golf Club is a golf club at Prestongrange House, Prestongrange near Prestonpans, East Lothian, Scotland, on the B1361.Between 1774 and 1926, the club was based at Levenhall Links, Musselburgh.-History:...
originated at Levenhall Links before moving to Prestongrange House
Prestongrange House
Prestongrange House is a historic house at Prestongrange near Prestonpans, East Lothian, Scotland, UK. It is situated near to two other historic houses, Hamilton House and Northfield House....
.
Conservation
Two areas of Levenhall Links have been designated as part of the Firth of ForthFirth of Forth
The Firth of Forth is the estuary or firth of Scotland's River Forth, where it flows into the North Sea, between Fife to the north, and West Lothian, the City of Edinburgh and East Lothian to the south...
Special Protection Area
Special Protection Area
A Special Protection Area or SPA is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds.Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and certain particularly threatened birds.Together with Special...
and are an important roosting site for wading birds at high tide, and the only major roost between Cramond
Cramond
Cramond is a seaside village now part of suburban Edinburgh, Scotland, located in the north-west corner of the city at the mouth of the River Almond where it enters the Firth of Forth....
and Aberlady
Aberlady
Aberlady is a coastal village in the Scottish council area of East Lothian. On Aberlady Bay, it is five miles northwest of Haddington and approximately 18 miles east of Edinburgh, to which it is linked by the A198 Dunbar - Edinburgh road.Aberlady Parish Church dates back to the 15th century. It...
. The boating lake attracts up to 200 wigeon
Wigeon
The Eurasian Wigeon, also known as Widgeon or Eurasian Widgeon is one of three species of wigeon in the dabbling duck genus Anas. It is common and widespread within its range...
who graze on the bank during the winter.
The wader scrape has also been designated as part of a Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
(SSSI).
The site is part of the John Muir Way
John Muir Way
The John Muir Way is a continuous coastal path in East Lothian, Scotland, UK. It is named in honour of the Scottish 19th-century conservationist John Muir, who was born at Dunbar, East Lothian, in 1838 and became a founder of America's national park system...
long-distance path along the entire East Lothian coast; Levenhall Links is part of the section between Fisherrow
Fisherrow
Fisherrow is a harbour and former fishing village at Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland, UK, to the east of Portobello and Joppa, and on the left bank of the River Esk.-History:...
harbour and Cockenzie harbour.
External links
- http://www.sepa.org.uk/news/releases/2002/pr179.html - Scottish Environment Protection AgencyScottish Environment Protection AgencyThe Scottish Environment Protection Agency is Scotland’s environmental regulator. Its main role is to protect and improve Scotland's environment...
(SEPA), possible Award for Habitat Enhancement for Levenhall Links - http://andrewsi.freeserve.co.uk/musselburgh_leaflet_andrews2004.pdf PDF Leaflet "Birding in Musselburgh" by the Scottish Ornithologists' ClubScottish Ornithologists' ClubThe Scottish Ornithologists' Club is a Scottish ornithological body, founded in March 1936 at the premises of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society. As of 2008, the SOC has 2,200 members. The Club runs the Scottish Birds Records Committee, which maintains a list of birds recorded in Scotland...
- http://www.entrust.org.home/facts-and-figures/project-search?record=459149&project=85&ebname=&projectname=Levenhall&object=&perpage=20&offset=0 - ENTRUST (Regulator of the Landfill Communities Fund) entry for Levenhall Links