Reviving peatlands and challenging 'bleak' image

12 hours ago

Samantha JaggerNorth East and Cumbria

News image — Peatland habitats support wildlife like the rare white-faced darter dragonfly

David Clarke A white-faced darter dragonfly sits on a green stem of a plant on a peatland bog. The dragon fly has a red and black body and head. Its wings are translucent. — Peatland habitats support wildlife like the rare white-faced darter dragonfly

A wildlife trust plans to spend almost £250,000 to revive damaged peatlands and challenge the perception they are "bleak and barren".

Cumbria Wildlife Trust said the county was "lucky to have a significant amount of peat habitats" which are England's biggest carbon store, but most were in a poor condition.

The trust secured funding to restore parts of Foulshaw Moss Nature Reserve and Skiddaw Forest, where old drainage channels have dried out the peat, "releasing carbon that has been locked up in the peat for thousands of years".

Peatland team manager Susie Webb said: "Peatlands are often seen as bleak, barren places - but they are beautiful, so underrated yet so important."

Healthy peat is the country's biggest carbon store but when damaged it releases planet-warming greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

The trust said the peat at Skiddaw Forest was "much drier than it should be, therefore we will be working to block these ditches and stop water from running off the site, re-wetting the peat and getting it back into a much better condition".

Colin Aldred Skiddaw Forest with the mountain Skiddaw in the background. There are huge patches of brown which indicate bracken or other vegetation. The summit is green. — The wildlife trust will work to restore peatland at Skiddaw Forest

Webb said the funding would also support Foulshaw Moss reserve, which needed further restoration work to help the bog thrive.

"We are lucky to have significant amounts of peat habitats in Cumbria, including large expanses of blanket bog on the upland fells to great swathes of lowland raised bog around Morecambe Bay and the Solway," Webb said.

Cumbria Wildlife Trust The sundew plant - a carnivorous plant that has sticky leaves and traps small insects and then dissolves them to use their nutrients. The sticky tendrils are red with a yellow head. — Peatlands support the sundew - carnivorous plant which dissolves insects for nutrients

Webb said Cumbrian peatlands were home to a "wide variety of species, from larger more obvious species such as curlew, short eared owls, frogs and lizards".

There are also a variety of dragonfly species and plants such as the sundew, which is carnivorous and has sticky leaves to trap small insects and dissolves them to use their nutrients.

'Vitally important'

Webb said peatlands had a "unique special biodiversity" but that not many people knew about them and "even less people care about them".

She said they were "vitally important" to fight climate change and despite them sometimes looking "quite monotonous on a large scale, when you crouch down and look at what is below your feet it's fascinating".

Susie Webb Cumbria Wildlife Trust peatland manager Susie Webb crouches over a peatland bog which is black and has some roots erupting from the soil. Susie is wearing outdoor clothing, a white cap, red t-shirt and blue rucksack. — Susie Webb said peatlands may look "bleak and barren" but they were "vitally important" for biodiversity

The trust said it would work with organisations including schools, transport companies and disability groups, to "plan improved access to peatlands and to enthuse and inspire people".

The grant has been provided by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

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