£16m funding for peatland restoration

Thousands of hectares of peatland in the UK are set to be restored to help tackle climate change and recover biodiversity.

Over £16m of government funding has been submitted to 12 restoration projects, from the Great North Bog to the Norfolk Broads, including projects from Somerset to County Durham.

The government is investing more than £50m to peat restoration as part of its commitment to restore approximately 35,000ha of peatland in England by the end of this parliament.

“Our peatlands hold over half of our terrestrial store of carbon,” says environment minister Rebecca Pow. “With just 1% in a near natural state and soils drying out we must take urgent action to prevent further carbon from being emitted into the atmosphere.”

A new £2m Lowland Agricultural Peat Water Discovery Pilot has been launched by the government, in support of its net zero commitment and sustainable agriculture promise.

A list of all current projects can be found here.