THE Scottish Executive plans a £13 million fund to pay for projects that reduce the impact of transporting timber by road.

The operation will run over three years, beginning in 2005. Scotland抯 annual timber production is set to double from five million tonnes a year to ten million tonnes by 2020 as trees planted in the 1980s are due for harvesting.

The new funding will help to manage this increase in production by paving the way for a new transport infrastructure to help minimise the impact of timber lorries on communities and on fragile public roads.

The fund also will be a major driver in opening up new timber supplies that have been out of bounds due to transport problems. The Scottish forestry minister, Lewis Macdonald, said: "This new fund will play a major role in taking away lorries from minor roads. A key ingredient is the development of new piers and railheads ... allowing more timber to be transported by sea and by rail."

Forestry Commission Scotland will administer the fund.