The Scottish Seabird Centre is a visitor attraction in North Berwick

North Berwick

The Royal Burgh of North Berwick is a seaside town in East Lothian, Scotland. It is situated on the south shore of the Firth of Forth, approximately 25 miles east of Edinburgh. North Berwick became a fashionable holiday resort in the 19th century because of its two sandy bays, the East Bay and the...

, 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...

. Opened by HRH The Prince of Wales in 2000 and funded by the Millennium Commission, the showpiece of the centre is the network of cameras which beam back live pictures from the bird colonies on islands such as the Bass Rock

Bass Rock

The Bass Rock, or simply The Bass, , is an island in the outer part of the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland. It is approximately offshore, and north-east of North Berwick. It is a steep-sided volcanic rock, at its highest point, and is home to a large colony of gannets...

 and Fidra

Fidra

Fidra is an uninhabited island in the Firth of Forth, north-west of North Berwick, on the east coast of Scotland.-Geography:...

. The local abundance of gannets, puffins and more has been described by Sir David Attenborough as one of the "Twelve Wildlife Wonders of the World"..

History

The site now occupied by the Scottish Seabird Centre once overlooked the North Berwick Outdoor Swimming Pool, a feature of the North Berwick Harbour

North Berwick Harbour

The Harbour at North Berwick in East Lothian, Scotland, was originally a ferry port for pilgrims travelling to St. Andrews in Fife. Today the water is home to leisure craft, a famous tourist launch and the remains of the fishing fleet that once dominated the area, while on dry land the Scottish...

 area from the 19th century until its eventual closure in 1996. The old pool has been filled in and is now a boat and dinghy park for members of the East Lothian Yacht Club

East Lothian Yacht Club

The East Lothian Yacht Club or ELYC is based at the harbour in North Berwick, East Lothian, Scotland. It was founded in 1928 and moved from its temporary base at the Fishermans Hall to the current building in 1931, since which time various expansions and redevelopments have taken place. Some of the...

. The buildings housing the offices of the Seabird Centre were previously a sun room.
During the public consultation phase many locals objected to the construction of the Seabird Centre on the grounds that the harbour area would not be able to cope with the large number of visitors, and that the large-scale construction required could damage the historic area. These fears proved to be unfounded although parking in the surrounding area has, perhaps inevitably, become even more of a problem. The seasonal park-and-ride scheme and Seabird Centre's special discounted rail ticket from Edinburgh, offers some relief in the summer months. The Seabird Centre, a VisitScotland five star visitor attraction, has become extremely popular, winning many awards for environmental and sustainable tourism

Sustainable tourism

Sustainable tourism is tourism attempting to make a low impact on the environment and local culture, while helping to generate future employment for local people. The aim of sustainable tourism is to ensure that development brings a positive experience for local people, tourism companies and the...

 including the Green Tourism Gold Award and the Queen's Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development in 2004 and 2009. HRH The Queen and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh visited the town in July 2009 to present the Seabird Centre with the award. It was an historic occasion, the first visit to the town by a reigning monarch in over 100 years. It also provides a local hub for the community with a fortnightly Cinema Club and year round festivals and events, such as the Fringe by the Sea and Slow Food Fairs.

Facilities

The main attraction at the Seabird Centre is the network of cameras which allow visitors to experience a close encounter with gannets, puffins, shags, cormorants and the rich variety of marine wildlife in the area, including sightings of dolphins and whales. The Seabird Centre is a leading example of sustainable tourism and a world leader in remote wildlife viewing. Solar powered cameras, sited on the islands and key sites around the Firth of Forth, broadcast live streaming images onto giant screens, all remotely controlled by visitors to the centre, allowing them to focus close up on the birds nesting, diving or feeding their young, without disturbing the wildlife. The Seabird Centre also features a discovery centre with cinema, environment zone and migration flyway, telescope deck, kids' play area, gift shop and licensed cafe with an outdoor sun deck overlooking the sea. Workshops for children are held on weekends and during school holidays and there is a year round programme of events and festivals. The Centre also organises an extensive programme of walks, including a free guided early bird beach walk every month. The Seabird Centre runs Seabird Seafari boat trips, from North Berwick Harbour daily to the islands from March to October. The Centre also has exclusive landing rights for the spectacular Bass Rock, owned by Sir Hew Hamilton-Dalrymple, and home to the largest single island gannet colony in the world. These 5 hour guided round trips, which leave from Dunbar Harbour in the fishing trawler Fisher Lassie, must be booked well in advance through the Seabird Centre. The "Sula II" also operates trips around the Bass Rock in summer.

Millennium Fund

The Scottish Seabird Centre was one of the flagship projects backed by the Millennium Commission which distributed cash from the UK National Lottery to cultural and heritage-related projects. A 64p stamp commemorating the opening of the Seabird Centre was released in 2000 as part of the "Above & Beyond" collection in the Millennium Series. Although the stamp features a colony of gannets, the featured picture was taken in South Africa, not (as many assume) on the Bass Rock.

Green Building

As well as introducing visitors to some spectacular scenery and wildlife, the construction of the building is also in tune with nature. Materials used to construct the centre were, whenever possible, environmentally sustainable and locally sourced. The centre was designed by Edinburgh architects Simpson & Brown to make use of natural light and ventilation, and to offer panoramic views both to sea and inland towards North Berwick Law. Very little plastic was used in construction, with wood, stone and metal being preferred.

External links

• Scottish Seabird Centre Official site
• Green Tourism - Review of the construction process
• Architects comments on the design of the centre
• Future extension of the Centre @ The Scotsman
• bbc.co.uk: "Nature in Scotland" page