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A significant new investment of €15 million in peatlands restoration will benefit cross-border collaboration, knowledge sharing and expertise building, particularly in the area of Results Based agri-environment Payment Schemes (RBPS). The EU-funded Wild Atlantic Nature LIFE Integrated Project will receive €10 million from the government’s Shared Island Fund and an additional €5 million in co-funding through the National Parks and Wildlife Service of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, in collaboration with the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) and NatureScot.
Today’s funding announcement recognises the success of the agri-environmental and peatland restoration expertise demonstrated through the work of LIFE IP Wild Atlantic Nature in high nature value areas and the potential for knowledge exchange with the project partners NIEA and NatureScot.
Launched in 2021, LIFE IP Wild Atlantic Nature has been working with communities, landowners, individual farming families and groups in the Northwest of Ireland to conserve and improve the quality of blanket bogs and associated habitats. A key strength of the project has been the success of their Results-Based agri-environment Payment Scheme through which, in 2022 alone, over 800 farmers have benefited from funding directly linked to the quality of the habitat on their farms, and the ecosystem services they provide including clean water, carbon storage and biodiversity.
The funding will be used to build capacity at local and national levels through upskilling, training and education programmes and restoration work. Sites in Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland will be selected to deliver practical peatland restoration, build capacity for long-term peatland management, undertake research and monitoring, exchange knowledge, and address socio-cultural issues across a range of restoration scenarios. These include the restoration of private and public lands, demonstration of restoration of erosion impacts, reactivation of drained peatlands, forest to bog restoration, control of alien invasives, addressing grazing pressures, improving community engagement and increasing education and awareness. The owners and users of the project sites will be at the centre of any planned activities and participation will be voluntary.
Speaking after his visit to the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15), where he represented Ireland at the most significant global biodiversity conference to be held in over a decade, Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Malcolm Noonan, said:
“This increased funding recognises the achievements of LIFE IP Wild Atlantic Nature in a short space of time. The success of this project to date has been based on cooperation with local communities, particularly farmers, to take simple actions to improve habitats on farmland. This new funding will allow us to overall develop capacity, share expertise and to intensify our efforts in peatland recovery on a collaborative cross-border basis as part of the government’s Shared Island initiative. A lack of technical and organisational capacity in peatland restoration is a barrier to preventing the ongoing decline of our peatlands - this funding will help to bridge that gap, working with our partners in Northern Ireland and Scotland.
"I’ve just returned from COP15 where the link between biodiversity and climate change is being discussed by many. Biodiversity knows no borders and this collaboration reflects that the importance of partner organisations working together across jurisdictions to protect and improve our natural environment. Our peatlands are a perfect example of how nature can help with mitigating the effects of climate change and I’m delighted that this funding will help strengthen efforts to restore more peatlands to deliver climate and ecosystem services and create a more sustainable island.”
Dr Derek McLoughlin, Project Manager of LIFE IP Wild Atlantic Nature said:
“We are delighted to be able to share the successes and learnings we’ve developed to date through LIFE IP Wild Atlantic Nature with organisations in Northern Ireland and Scotland and to, in turn, learn from expertise of those two organisations and apply it to the Irish context.
"With this funding we plan to set up lighthouse sites to develop multidimensional peatland restoration, in turn delivering social and environmental returns working in partnership with local communities. Learnings from this cross border collaboration will be integrated into the work of National Parks and Wildlife Service to support its role in peatland restoration and agri-environment schemes aimed at improving biodiversity."
Professor Des Thompson FRSE, Principal Adviser on Biodiversity and Science, NatureScot, said:
“Concerted action to restore peatlands is vital in meeting our Net Zero targets. In Scotland, through the NatureScot Peatland ACTION programme, we look forward to sharing our work with colleagues in Ireland. Cooperation, sharing experiences and innovation are essential ingredients for success.”
Dr Sara McGuckin, Northern Ireland Environment Agency welcomed the announcement, saying:
“Restoring our precious peatlands will play a critical role in addressing our nature and climate crises. We welcome this important Shared Island initiative and look forward to strengthening our collaborative working with our counterparts in Ireland and Scotland in pursuit of healthy, functioning peatlands and biodiversity.”
There are plans to further expand the work of LIFE IP Wild Atlantic Nature in the next two years across a wider geographical area to assist further recovery of blanket bogs nationwide, with a particular focus on Ireland’s 55 blanket bog Special Areas of Conservation (SACs). This expanded ambition will also support the ACRES Cooperation Project Results Based agri-environment Payment Scheme (RBPS), similar to that piloted in Wild Atlantic Nature, which will be rolled out to over 20,000 farmers by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine as part of the Common Agricultural Policy Strategic Plan from 2023.
Peatlands, including blanket bogs, are one of our most important tools in addressing climate change. Intact blanket bog sequesters an average of 0.5 tonnes of C/ha/year, as long as it remains sufficiently wet, making it one of the most effective ecosystems for carbon sequestration and storage. However, when blanket bogs are drained or otherwise damaged, this ecosystem function ceases resulting in carbon loses at a rate of more than 5 tonnes C/ha/year.
Wild Atlantic Nature LIFE Integrated Project (IP) is a nine-year environmental project (2021-2029) led by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. It aims to improve Ireland’s performance in conserving habitats, and in particular to improve the conservation status in the Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) network of blanket bog, a priority habitat under the Habitats Directive. The primary focus is on 35 Natura 2000 sites in the northwest of Ireland. The project works with farmers and local communities to conserve and improve the quality of blanket bogs and associated habitats, and the ecosystem services they provide including clean water, carbon storage and biodiversity.
The Wild Atlantic Nature Shared Island project will develop lighthouse demonstration sites in Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland to deliver practical peatland restoration, build capacity for long-term peatland management, undertake research and monitoring, exchange knowledge, and address socio-cultural issues across a range of restoration approaches.
The RBPS model directly links farmer payments to the quality of the habitat, thereby putting the landowner, their skills, expertise and knowledge of their land central to the development of this project. The project also implements a number of actions aimed at enhancing wider community engagement in the project. These include establishing local support groups across the project sites, developing and implementing community knowledge exchange programmes, administering community outreach activities, developing a schools education programme, supporting communities to develop and manage tourism and recreational activities and develop appropriate infrastructure. Another key action of the project will be a national campaign to enhance public awareness and appreciation of Ireland’s Natura 2000 network.
As well as working locally, LIFE IP Wild Atlantic Nature brings together the experience and knowledge of associated partners including the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, RTÉ, Coillte, Fáilte Ireland, The Heritage Council, Bord na Móna, Teagasc, Northern & Western Regional Assembly, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela in Spain.
NatureScot has just published a technical compendium of peatland restoration techniques: https://www.nature.scot/doc/peatland-action-technical-compendium