A location in the extreme north of South Lanarkshire, effectively in Glasgow, Cuningar represents an area of low-lying land within a meander of the River Clyde, between Dalmarnock and Parkhead, but on the south bank of the river. This sharp bend is known as the Cuningar Loop. In the 19th C., a reservoir and other facilities associated with the Glasgow Waterworks were built here, although these are now gone. Cuningar Loop Woodland Park was developed as part of the legacy of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014. The Camlachie Burn enters the Clyde on the north bank of the Cuningar Loop.
The area has also been test-drilled to assess the viability of extracting heat from water filling abandoned coal mines beneath, as part of a UK Geoenergy Observatory. This research project will run from 2018 to 2035, is funded by the Natural Environment Research Council and the UK Government, and supported by the British Geological Survey and Glasgow City Council. Twelve boreholes have been drilled from 9 to 199m in depth (30 - 653 feet) and will be monitored over the coming years. Although this water is only around 12°C, there is potential to use heat pump technology to raise the temperature such that it can be used for heating homes and businesses in the city.
