West Loch Tarbert has offered a sanctuary to wildlife wonders since time immemorial. Spilling into open sea at Ardpatrick point, the 15 kilometre stretch of water once boasted dense meadows of seagrass and kelp forests, sprawling oyster reefs and nesting osprey, greylag geese, gannets and a plethora of other bird life as well as plant life, insects and creatures of land.
Action West Loch – a local organisation – not only celebrate the existing culture and community of West Loch Tarbert but appreciate and encourage the rich native ecosystems that surround them.
This project saw them purchase benthic survey equipment for use by citizen scientists. As well as sourcing and purchasing the equipment the project also ran training courses and survey days for volunteers.
In 2025 SMEEF was able to provide a grant of £22,324 to support this work using resources from the Nature Restoration Fund.