1. Clifton Bain
Director, IUCN UK Peatland
Programme

2. IUCN UK Peatland Programme
Commission of Inquiry on UK Peatlands
 Patrons from Science, Policy & Practice:
Lord Lindsay, Sir Graham Wynne, Prof Andrew Watkinson
 Core Panel & Advisory Committee
“Investing in Peatlands” Conferences
 2010, Durham: The Climate Challenge
 2011, Stirling: Funding for Peatlands
 2012, Bangor: Delivering Restoration
Website: www. iucn-uk-peatlandprogramme.org
 Partner Initiatives
 Communicate Key Findings

3. • At a global scale peatlands store about the same amount of
carbon that is present in the atmosphere.
• ~500 Pg in peatlands
• Loss of 1.6% of peatland C = total annual human C emissions
• Loss of 0.6% of peatland C = total annual increase in
atmospheric CO2-C
•
In the UK, peatlands cover approximately 15% of the land
area.

4. Peatland Ecosystem Services
• Biodiversity, sport and leisure
• Climate change mitigation and adaptation
• Water quality and supply

5. Sphagnum building blocks

6. RSPB Forsinard Reserve
Blocking Hill Drains

7. % Sphagnum
% bare peat
Data J.Holden Defra SP0572

8. Water

10. Around 70% of the water sources used for public water supply, derive
from the uplands of Britain.
Restoring peatlands could lead to improved raw water quality and
result in a range of benefits.
Carbon and Cost:
Reduced power and chemical costs for treatment processes resulting
from extending the cleaning / replacement cycles. Could also result
in reduction in capital maintenance spend.
Water Quality:
Improvement to (or reduce the risk of further deterioration of) the raw
water quality envelope especially preventing peak conditions for
colour, turbidity and TOC - it is also likely to improve stability of
disinfection.

11. Biodiversity
• unique & specialised
• part or full life cycle
• sensitive to pollution, management
& climate change

12. Couwenberg et al (in revision) Hydrobiologia -

13. Moors for the Future
Black Hill 2005

14. Moors for the Future
landscape scale restoration
Black Hill 2008

15. Forest planting