Great_North_Bog

Great North Bog

Great North Bog

Peatland restoration initiative in England

The Great North Bog is a large restoration initiative covering over 90%[1] of the upland peatland in the North of England.[2] It is a £200m project and aims to restore nearly 7,000 square kilometres of upland over 20 years.[3] It is a partnership between the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Partnership, Yorkshire Peat Partnership and the Moors for the Future Partnership.[4] The area covers five national parks — the Peak District, Yorkshire Dales, North York Moors, Lake District and Northumberland.

Ecosystem recovery

Some of the peat is 8000 years old,[5] and it is thought that about half the peatland needs restoring, by work in the winter.[6] Much of these blanket bogs had been drained to graze sheep, this draining was subsidized in the 1950s and 1960s,[7] and raise grouse for shooting.[5] The land is currently managed by sheep farmers and landowners,[7] and is thought to be losing peat depth at 2.5 cm a year while regrowing at 1 cm per year.[7]

Flood control

Peat is now being washed away down deep channels and during storms the town of Otley is often flooded via the River Wharfe.[5] Studies indicate that restoring part of the peatland with stone, wood or coir dams greatly slowed peak water flow.[5]

Carbon capture

The peatlands currently store 400 million tonnes of carbon.[7] The project say that damaged peat in the area releases 3.7 million tonnes of carbon annually,[8] about 1% of UK greenhouse gas emissions.[7] The programme includes a restoration and conservation plan which will make a significant contribution to the UK’s carbon sequestration targets.[8][5]

References

  1. [1]
    "The Great North Bog" (PDF).
  2. [2]
    "The Great North Bog – The UK's Peatland Restoration Partnership". Retrieved 2021-12-26.
  3. [3]
    Spencer, Ben. "Revive the Great North Bog to help fix our climate crisis". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
  4. [4]
    "Bogs, banks and bubble barriers: five great projects to protect nature". The Guardian. 2021-12-26. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
  5. [5]
    "For peat's sake: the race is on to save Britain's disappearing moorland bogs". The Guardian. 2021-09-12. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
  6. [6]
    "Green Renewal – The Economics of Enhancing the Natural Environment" (PDF).
  7. [7]
    "Ambitious plans aim to create a 'Great North Bog'". The Northern Farmer. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
  8. [8]
    Hudspeth, Sarah (2021-11-10). "Great North Bog information session". North Pennines AONB. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
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