A new ranger could be employed to roll out improvements to the paths network across Moray.
The core paths ranger will take forward a three-year plan to upgrade routes and promote their use.
They will also be in charge of recruiting volunteers to help with the work improve surfaces and clear access points.
Money for the job and improvements to the network comes from contributions relating to Dorenell wind farm, near Dufftown.
£188k for Moray core paths
A planning condition means the council receives £50,000 a year from developer EDF Energy.
And that amounts to £1.25 million over the 25 year lifetime of the wind farm.
Previously councillors agreed that money should be used to improve the condition and promote the use of Moray’s paths network.
Most of the work is expected to be small scale projects across the area to make the best use of resources.
Members of the economic development and infrastructure committee will make a decision on employing a ranger to take forward the three year action plan next week.
In his report open space officer Ian Douglas said the most efficient way to get improvements done was to employ someone.
He said: “Works at multiple locations spread across the whole of the paths network means that external contractors would likely be less interested in securing the work.
Dorenell wind farm cash
“And in any case existing council staff would still have to coordinate overall effort.
“Additionally, currently there is considerable market volatility and difficulty in securing contractors for this type of work.”
The fixed-term ranger job is expected to run from October this year until December 2025.
However the role could be extended depending on future funding.
New core paths ranger
Annual wages for the ranger are just under £28,000.
A total budget of £188,000 is earmarked for the three year project.
The action plan uses a traffic light system to grade the condition of the area’s paths.
There are 121 green routes that are considered to be in a good state, 159 amber and 78 in the red category.
Small scale projects
Those in the red grouping will be dealt with first.
Mr Douglas said: “The key objective is to make every prioritised core path as accessible as possible.
“The most effective way to achieve this in a way that spreads resources, is to implement small scale works across the network rather than limit operations to expensive projects in a few locations.”
Next week’s meeting will take place on June 20.
