Green energy regeneration hopes for Kirkconnel and Kelloholm

A 10-year plan has been drawn up to exploit renewable energy opportunities to revitalise two former mining towns.

Dumfries and Galloway Council is being asked to endorse the strategy for Kirkconnel and Kelloholm.

It would then been submitted for consideration as part of the Borderlands Growth Deal across southern Scotland and northern England.

A report said it could boost the economy, create jobs and provide a sustainable future for the community.

The two adjacent south of Scotland towns were coal mining heartlands for many years.

However, a new "place plan" sets out a "reimaging of the relationship" the area has with energy production.

It said the decline of coal mining had led to a fall in population as people looked elsewhere for employment.

"The failure to replace coal as an engine for local growth has remained a challenge for the community and is central to the income and employment deprivation levels that we see today," it said.

The report has identified the growth of "green, clean renewables technology" as a potential solution.

The area sits close to planned or operational green energy projects estimated to be worth £1bn - among them a pumped storage hydro scheme at Glenmuckloch.

As well as the construction opportunities offered by such developments, there could be longer-term benefits offered in acquiring the skills needed by the renewables industry.

To that end, a new innovation centre is in the pipeline which could provide access to accredited training.

The plan for the area said that could help "reinvent the economic and social heart" of the towns and provide a "more prosperous future for all that live and do business" there.

The council is being asked to back the proposals which could then seek financial support from the Borderlands town investment plan.