Background
Blanket bog and lowland raised bog are priority habitat types in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan. Bogs of both types have been altered by afforestation in the past and some still have the potential to be restored. Since 1989, many attempts have been made to restore bogs by removing forests. In most cases, vegetation mainly of bog species has returned but some have remained too dry and many have tended to scrub over with birch or conifer trees.
Research is in progress to determine cost-effective methodology for restoring bogs altered by afforestation.
Publications
Deforesting and restoring peat bogs – a review
A review of literature was done to find out what was already known about restoring bogs from forest and to see what lessons could be learned from earlier work.
Forestry Commission Technical Paper 32.
Restoring Afforested Peat Bogs (PDF-954K)
Results of current research.
Forestry Commission Research Note 6.
Experimental work
Two experiments are underway to compare a range of methods for restoring bogs altered by afforestation:
- The Caithness experiment is on blanket bog at Halsary and Braehour Forests in Caithness (photo below left).
- The Flanders Moss experiment is on a lowland raised bog at Flanders Moss National Nature Reserve, Stirlingshire (photo below right).
Closely related work is underway at West Flanders Moss, where a forest on a lowland raised bog is being restored following harvesting of timber over the period 2006 to 2012. Vegetation and invertebrate monitoring are planned to accompany greenhouse gas flux measurements that will gauge the response of these gases to the harvesting and bog restoration.
Future research
Some practical bog restoration projects have only been partially successful. Two main problems remain:
- How to fully rewet bogs that have dried out and suffered peat cracking and that do not respond sufficiently to drain blocking
- How to control trees establishing on restored bogs.
These will be the subject of new experimental work due to start in 2009.
Contact
For further information about this work please contact Russell Anderson.
