For peat’s sake: nationally important carbon store under threat - Shropshire peat bog restoration helps to save vital natural asset
18 March 2010
- Natural England report highlights decline of a critical carbon store
- Three quarters of England’s deep peatlands are damaged or degraded
- Annual carbon losses equivalent to carbon emissions from over a third of a million homes
Today (18 March 2010) Natural England has launched a comprehensive review of the condition of England’s peatlands and the vital role they play in combating climate change. The third largest raised peat bog in Britain is in Shropshire.
England’s Peatlands – Carbon Storage and Greenhouse Gases, provides detailed mapping information on the extent and condition of England’s peatlands. Alarmingly, the report has found that almost three quarters of the deep peat area in England is now damaged, showing physical signs of degradation or subject to inappropriate management such as drainage, regular burning or cultivation. In essence, the mechanism that would allow England’s peatlands to actively store up new reserves of carbon has been turned off.
The high level of damage means that the reservoir of 580 million tonnes of carbon stored within the peat is now slowly leaking back into the atmosphere. The report estimates that, as a result, our damaged peatlands are releasing almost 3 million tonnes of CO2 each year - equivalent to the average emissions of over 350,000 households.
In Shropshire, Fenn's, Whixall, Bettisfield, Wem & Cadney Mosses covers almost 1,000 ha. near Whitchurch. The centre of the Mosses, now Fenn's and Whixall Mosses, National Nature Reserve, was torn apart for commercial peat cutting with one drain every 10 m. As a result, rainfall, which used to be absorbed by the peat bog, used to rush off the bog through these drains, into streams and lowland rivers, causing flooding on surrounding land, wherever drains outside the site were not maintained.
Natural England and the Countryside Council for Wales are now restoring the bogs by damming the ditches and installing storm water pipes.
Restoration of this important Shropshire peat bog is not only helping the peat to capture carbon, but is benefiting precious wildlife habitat, and reducing the rate of run-off. Natural England has also acquired some of the drains causing the flooding off-site and, together with neighbours, has cleaned them out, to further reduce any flooding.
Shropshire was once covered in peatlands. Many of these have been drained for arable and pastoral agriculture, their peat is decaying and they are releasing large amounts of carbon into our atmosphere every year. Others drained and planted up with conifers are similarly decomposing. Natural England’s Meres and Mosses Revival Project aims to restore many more of Shropshire’s peatlands, using the techniques developed at Fenn’s and Whixall NNR.
Helen Phillips, Natural England Chief Executive, said: “This report is a wake-up call – England’s peatlands are a crucial buffer against climate change but have been extensively damaged by centuries of inappropriate management. We have to stop the rot and ensure that peatlands are properly looked after as one of our most precious environmental resources.”
Joan Daniels, Natural England and the Countryside Council for Wales’ Senior Reserve Manager at Fenn’s and Whixall Mosses, in Shropshire said:
“This report shows why it is so important to restore the Mosses. It conserves our past; the Mosses are famous for their bog bodies and irreplaceable 10,000 years-old record of past landscapes and past climate change; it conserves our wonderful threatened rare boggy bio-diversity – our white-faced darters and large heath butterflies, and eco-system services, and by re-pickling, the peat keeps all that 10,000 years worth of carbon in the bog rather than threatening our children’s future.”
“The report also highlights that 70% of peat used in this country is used by amateur gardeners. Anyone walking into a garden centre this spring should think when they opt for a bag of peat-based compost. It is well proven now that peat-free composts outperform those containing peat in all aspects of gardening, so we all ought to do our best to keep the peat in the bogs.”
The ways in which peat has been damaged vary widely. Around 40% of deep lowland fen peat is now under cultivation and a further 22% is drained for intensive livestock grazing. Some 30% of our upland blanket peat is under rotationally burnt moorland. Over a fifth of blanket peat has been dried out by shallow, moorland drains called 'grips'. 14% are marked by 'haggs' and gullies – the erosion features that form as peat becomes exposed and is washed away.
The report makes it clear that the widespread restoration of our degraded peatlands by re-wetting dried out bogs and minimising damaging practices could substantially reduce these carbon losses and cost-effectively deliver an important contribution to meeting the UK’s carbon targets.
Helen Philips concluded: “We can no longer approach peatlands as limitless resources that we can exploit without consequence. Their condition has major implications for our response to climate change, the alleviation of flooding, the quality of our water supplies and the future of many rare and important species. Our report has shown the value of peatland restoration in the battle against climate change and we should do all we can to give peatlands a more sustainable future.”
Following the recent launch by Defra of their Act on CO2 peat campaign targeting amateur gardeners who use the majority of the peat (around 70%) that is used in horticulture, Environment Secretary Hilary Benn MP said: “Natural England’s report is a timely reminder of what’s at stake if we fail to look after our peatlands. Peat soils are extremely valuable carbon stores as well as being home to wildlife and important to archaeology, and we should be doing everything we can to protect them.”
Ends
Notes to Editors:
You can download Natural England’s report: 'England’s Peatlands – Carbon Storage and Greenhouse Gases'
Natural England’s report follows the launch by Defra of a major campaign designed to encourage gardeners and the horticultural industry to minimise their use of peat-based products. The Act on CO2 peat campaign will underline the importance of using alternatives to peat wherever possible in order to help protect the UK’s remaining peatlands.
About Natural England
Natural England is the government’s independent advisor on the natural environment. Established in 2006 our work is focused on enhancing England’s wildlife and landscapes and maximising the benefits they bring to the public.
- We establish and care for England’s main wildlife and geological sites, ensuring that over 4,000 National Nature Reserves and Sites of Special Scientific Interest are looked after and improved.
- We work to ensure that England’s landscapes are effectively protected, designating England’s National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Marine Conservation Zones, and advising widely on their conservation.
- We run England’s Environmental Stewardship green farming schemes that deliver over £400 million a year to farmers and landowners, enabling them to enhance the natural environment across two thirds of England’s farmland.
- We fund, manage, and provide scientific expertise for hundreds of conservation projects each year, improving the prospects for thousands of England’s species and habitats.
- We promote access to the wider countryside, helping establish National Trails and coastal trails and ensuring that the public can enjoy and benefit from them.
More press information from Judie Kellie 01299 896555 / 07973 744161 : judie@jkpr.co.uk or Dean Gallen 0300 060 1079 dean.g.gallen@naturalengland.org.uk
