A fifth of Scotland is covered in peat but up to 80% of that is currently degraded and emitting carbon (6.0MtCO2e per year across Scotland, almost equal to that released from Scotland's 2.5 million homes).
The Green Network has developed Clyde Peatlands to directly address the opportunities for peatland restoration across Glasgow City Region with support and funding from NatureScot, through the Peatland ACTION Fund.
Spanning Glasgow City Region from Loch Lomond to the Southern Uplands, Clyde Peatlands covers the eight regional local authorities of East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde, Glasgow, North Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire, South Lanarkshire and West Dunbartonshire.
It has been endorsed by the Council Leaders of all eight authorities and aims to bring about a step change in peatland restoration across the region to deliver benefits for the climate, nature and people.
Hills dominate the City Region’s landscape. Even from the centre of Glasgow the Campsie Fells to the north, the Kilpatricks to the west, Slammanan Plateau to the east and the start of the Southern Uplands to the south frame the views. And, where there are hills there’s usually peat and this is certainly the case in our area with around an estimated 50,000ha across Glasgow City Region.
We know that nationally up to 80% of peatland is degraded and, with the City Region’s mix of extensive urban areas, agriculture and forestry, it’s very likely that much of our region’s peatland has been damaged.
Clyde Peatlands represents a fantastic opportunity to address this historic degradation and deliver a range of benefits to the people and wildlife of Glasgow City Region.
Healthy peatlands can capture and store carbon for very long time periods. However, much of our peat is degraded through drainage for agriculture and forestry and from urban expansion and that means it is emitting carbon rather than storing it.
With challenging national and local targets set to reach Net Zero, peatland restoration will be a key part of that drive. Firstly, we want to repair the degradation and stop the emissions and secondly create healthy, functioning peat bogs that capture and lock in carbon for the long-term through natural processes.
Clyde Peatlands will lead on this drive for Glasgow City Region.
Historically the landscape was much easier for species to move through in search of food, to mate and to escape catastrophic events such as fire. There were lots of habitat patches connected by corridors that species found it easy to move through such as hedgerows, river corridors, natural grasslands and peat bogs. There are known as habitat or nature networks.
Intensive land uses such as agriculture and urban expansion have “fragmented” the landscape for species so that they can no longer move as freely around. We want to reverse this fragmentation by restoring degraded habitat and creating new habitat in key locations that will connect things back up.
Peatland is a UK and Scottish priority habitat and home to a unique array of plants and animals. We want to ensure their future is ensured by allowing to freely through the landscape.
Lowland Raised Bogs are a particular kind of peatland that occur in flatter landscapes, often around where people live in towns and villages. They have very often been badly degraded by drainage and extraction of peat for fuel and fertilizer and are often viewed locally as a place with little value or interest.
We want to change that by offering the chance for people to learn about the value of peatlands and to provide the opportunity to get actively involved in repairing them through volunteering. This will bring with it a range of health and well-being benefits as well changing perceptions of bogs to a valuable local asset.
Clyde Peatlands is a Green Network Blueprint delivery project hosted by South Lanarkshire Council with support and funding from NatureScot, through the Peatland ACTION Fund.