SELKIRK'S £31m flood protection scheme was officially opened today.

The project, which began in 2009, will provide protection to 600 homes and businesses.

And its completion was marked with the burial of a time capsule by Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform, Roseanna Cunningham and Council Leader David Parker, which included a signed school jumper and newspaper cuttings put together by local pupils.

Councillor Parker said: "This is a momentous day for Selkirk.

"Around 600 homes and businesses now have protection from major flood events thanks to the Selkirk flood protection scheme, the largest project of its kind delivered by Scottish Borders Council.

"We must thank the Scottish Government for their support of this project, which we believe will encourage business growth and employment, as well as provide protection to people’s homes from major flood events.

"The council will continue to take forward the Hawick flood protection scheme with the aim of providing similar protection to its residents and businesses."

The Scottish Government provided 80 per cent of the funding which has allowed for a total of two kilometres of flood defences to be created between the Ettrick Water and the Riverside recreational and industrial areas.

Other features of the scheme include a water management system at St Mary’s Loch which can store the equivalent of 620 Olympic swimming pools’ worth of water – which helped protect properties during Storm Desmond in December 2015.

Ms Cunningham said: "Flooding can have devastating consequences for individuals, businesses and communities and that is why we are working with partners and investing in schemes to protect against flooding.

"The opening of this new scheme is good news for Selkirk and will provide lasting protection for around 600 properties against the sort of flooding that has affected this area.

"We are committed to reducing flood risk across Scotland and we will continue to make available £42million a year to fund important new projects to protect communities most at risk from flooding."

The construction work took just two years to complete and more than 150 people worked on the scheme at its peak – around half were Borderers.

Councillor Gordon Edgar, SBC’s Executive Member for Roads and Infrastructure, added: "Selkirk’s history is entwined with the rivers, burns and waters which surround it.

"They have provided the town with work through the mills but also created havoc, from the flood of 1977 which brought down the Auld Stane Brig, to the floods of 2003 and 2004 which devastated Bannerfield and Philiphaugh in particular.

"All flood schemes take a long time to plan, design and then build, but I am delighted Selkirk now has a completed scheme which will protect homes and make it easier for businesses in the Riverside area to secure flood insurance.

"We hope this will lead to the regeneration of the area and encourage the creation of jobs."