The Deeside Forest Working Party, which comprises Forest Authority, Scottish Natural Heritage and Aberdeenshire Council and representative landowners, has been assessing the native woods on Deeside. After extensive consultation with the local community the resulting Highland Deeside Forest report put forward ways to improve the silviculture of the ‘Crown Jewels’ of the native pinewoods on Deeside, and to promote the creation of new native woods. One project that developed as a result of this work has been the Birse Community Millennium Forest (project 3/140), including the restoration of the water powered sawmill at Finzean.