19th April 2018
The Moorland Association is delighted to have contributed to the UK’s inaugural collaborative Peatland Strategy which was published today by the IUCN UK Peatland Programme and outlines a shared vision for a brighter future for UK’s peatlands.
There is currently more carbon stored in the UK’s peatland than in the combined forests of Britain and France, representing 42% of the UK’s soil carbon stock. Accordingly, it is vitally important to conserve and enhance the health of UK’s peatlands.
The main benefits of healthy, restored peatland include increased carbon retention, improved water quality, reduced flood risk, greater biodiversity, sustainable grazing and a favourable habitat for a healthy population of red grouse.
In the North of England, the Moorland Association’s members are at the forefront of peatland restoration initiatives and in collaboration with the Uplands Management Group produced the Blanket Bog Land Management Guidance late last year. This useful toolkit was created to enhance land managers’ understanding of the current condition of blanket bog and allow them to implement peatland restoration methods to make improvements.
At least 24,000 hectares of blanket bog on grouse moors in England have already undergone restoration – an area larger than the combined cities of Manchester and Liverpool. Peatland experts who have carried out the work in collaboration with land managers are world leaders in this field.
Moorland Association members across northern England also provide the moors that serve as sites for ongoing research and monitoring into the impacts of moorland management and restoration techniques.
Amanda Anderson, Director of the Moorland Association said: “We are pleased to be part of the group that helped to produce the UK’s first collaborative Peatland Strategy and look forward to building on the relationship with our partners to restore and enhance the UK’s peatlands.”
“Moorland managers on grouse moors spanning the uplands of England are already embracing measures to help safeguard the country’s peat and meet the government’s climate change targets. Moreover, the recently published blanket bog guidance will allow grouse moor managers to make informed decisions based on best practice and result in healthier areas of peatland in the long run.”
For more information on the IUCN UK Peatland Programme or to download a copy of the UK Peatland Strategy please visit www.iucn-uk-peatlandprogramme.org.
