Minister Tom Hayes TD, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, has formally launched a major nature conservation project which is restoring rare raised bogs across the country at an event on Scohaboy Bog, Co. Tipperary. This site is one of a number of sites in the project which is managed by Coillte, in partnership with the National Parks and Wildlife Service. Raised bogs are extremely rare in global terms and are sites of European and international importance.
This Project titled “Demonstrating Best Practice in Raised Bog Restoration in Ireland” is a nature conservation project jointly funded by EU DG-Environment, the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and Coillte under the EU LIFE-Nature Programme. The project focuses on the restoration of 685 ha of raised bog habitat on 17 Coillte owned sites across 7 counties within the Natura 2000 Network and in Natural Heritage Areas. This project implements best practice restoration techniques developed in Coillte’s previous raised bog restoration project.
In Ireland Raised bogs once formed extensive wetlands over much of the central lowlands of Ireland, but in the past they were considered to be wastelands that needed to be converted to more productive use. As a result, most of Ireland’s raised bogs were drained and cut for fuel on a large scale, and consequently, only a fraction of the former area of wetland raised bog habitat remains. The project aims has been to remove planted trees, rewet the bogs and create the conditions for regeneration of active, peat-forming bog habitat.
Tom Hayes TD, Minister of State with Special Responsibility for Food, Forestry Horticulture and Food Safety said “Raised bogs are beautiful landscapes and home to an extensive range of flora and fauna. They are a unique feature of the Irish landscape and of considerable tourist value. This Project is a very positive initiative which will contribute greatly to the preservation of Ireland’s valued bog habitats and the safeguarding of our natural heritage and biodiversity.
“It is a genuine pleasure to come here today, and meet with the Coillte team and members of the NPWS and the local community, who together have been working to restore this unique landscape,” he said.
Goodbody Economic Consultants have estimated the economic value of nature and biodiversity on the Coillte estate to be €322 million per annum highlighting the major stake that Coillte holds of Ireland’s “Natural Capital”. Coillte is the leader in bog restoration and has been involved in the restoration of over 3,200 ha of bog since 2002.
Dr. Ciarán Fallon, Director of Stewardship and Public Goods at Coillte said: “These sites are of international ecological importance and Coillte is really proud to have led their restoration. These rewetted bogs will become a habitat for rare species of plants and animals and a sink for atmospheric carbon. Rehabilitating them increases biodiversity and helps combat climate change. The project represents a significant increase in Ireland natural capital”.
“This restoration project at Scohaboy has undertaken in partnership with the National Parks and Wildlife Service and the local community. It has been designed to actively encourage people to visit and experience these unique and extraordinary Irish landscapes. Coillte’s strategic vision is to sustain the earth’s natural resources and attract people to nature and this project is one realisation of that vision. I look forward to many more in the years to come”.
Also commenting on the Project, Jim Ryan of National Parks and Wildlife Service said:
“It has been a pleasure working with our colleagues in Coillte to bring back active peat forming raised bog from the threat of extinction. It is one of Ireland’s most iconic and rare habitats. Now extremely rare and endangered in all of western Europe, raised bog is recognised not just as a refuge for very special wildlife species but also as of importance as a recreational amenity and for combating climate change and flooding.
“This change in public attitudes to bogs, from wastelands to important national and global assets, is being formally recognised in Ireland by the development of the National Peatland Strategy and the preparation of conservation management plans for all our designated raised bog sites. These developments will allow Ireland to manage its peatlands, including Scohaboy Bog, in an environmentally sustainable manner for everyone.”
Source: Envirocentre.ie – Major Biodiversity Project Restores Rare Wetland Habitat
