An environmental hub on the banks of Kinghorn Loch has been opened six years after the idea was floated.
The Ecology Centre’s £350,000 home, designed to be as energy efficient as possible, will be used to educate people about nature, conservation and respect for the environment.
The timber-clad structure was paid for by the Big Lottery Fund with a £920,000 grant, which will also contribute towards the organisation’s running costs for the next five years, and £20,000 from the Robertson Trust.
Designed by Dunfermline architect Stuart Hannah, it has a passive heating system to reduce energy consumption, solar panels to generate electricity and heat water and a green roof to help it blend into the landscape.
Adjoining it are three recycled shipping containers that include the new base for the Tool Shed project that refurbishes old tools for donation to projects locally and in Africa.
The centre was opened by Fife Deputy Provost Kay Morrison and Kirkcaldy MSP David Torrance.
General manager Julie Samuel said: “The new home for the Ecology Centre has been many years in the planning and we have encountered and overcome many challenges along the way.
“It is wonderful to finally be in the new building and we now look forward to continue to run our environmental, volunteer and employment training programmes for the good of the local community for many years to come.”
The centre, formerly known as Craigencalt Ecology Centre, was based at nearby Craigencalt Farm for 15 years, but its lease expired last year.
As construction work was carried out on the building, staff and volunteers began enhancing the surrounding land and have already created a woodland walk, a wildlife pond and campfire area.
They have also used a grant of £5,000 from the Kew Gardens Grow Wild initiative to build a dry composting toilet in a quaint wooden shed, which they have nicknamed “A Loo With A View”.
The Ecology Centre land was purchased by the charity on behalf of the community, mostly with a grant from the Scottish Government’s Scottish Land Fund.
For more information visit www.theecologycentre.org.