THE gold-digging heritage of the Borders is to be preserved by a newly-formed organisation.

Enthusiasts, under the name of Southern Uplands Mining Heritage Organisation, will focus on sites across the south of Scotland.

The group will highlight long-forgotten mining ventures in places like Duns, where there were significant sandstone quarries producing stone for centuries.

There was also prehistoric mining for copper at Hoardweel Mine near the town.

Other mining ventures such as slate quarrying around Peebles will be brought to life.

And the story will be told of how the southern uplands itself has been instrumental in historical mining with the earliest known quarrying in Scotland being around Biggar for chert in around 4000 BCE.

St Mary's Loch in Yarrow Valley will provide a focus on gold production during the 16th and 17th centuries.

Other sites of interest in the region include Annan and Dumfries for their sandstone quarries, Canonbie for limestone mining, Thornhill for mining dolomite, copper mining near Wigtown, Stranraer for slate and Leadhills for gold.

The National Association of Mining History Organisation (NAMHO) sub-group will be formed at another site of historical significance - the Museum of Lead Mining in Wanlockhead where the last metal mining for lead took place.

The group's main aims are to improving mining and quarrying knowledge, ensuring the protection of mining and quarrying evidence, enhancing heritage skills, encouraging heritage interest amongst community groups and government, and helping communities benefit economically and socially from the project.

The formation meeting will take place at 2pm on Saturday, March 7 in Wanlockhead.