The Irish Peatland Conservation Council (IPCC) has said that EU nature restoration targets are “great news” for Ireland and its “struggling” peatland habitat and biodiversity.
Only 25% of Irish peatlands are “healthy enough” to provide ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration and freshwater filtration, according to IPCC estimates.
The IPCC welcomed the passing of the Nature Restoration Law by MEPs which it described it as a “pivotal moment” for Ireland’s climate and biodiversity emergency declared in 2019.
The law will be “a way forward” to link all restoration programmes currently underway and facilitate continual scientific monitoring to “guarantee” the recovery of peatlands, the IPCC said.
Irish peatland habitat
In the EU, 81% of habitats are in poor condition and not functioning ecologically which, the IPCC said, aligns with the condition of Ireland’s protected peatland habitats.
In 2019, The Status of EU Protected Habitats and Species in Ireland assessed the status of habitats and species that Ireland is required to protect under the EU Habitats Directive.
The status of Ireland’s raised bogs, blanket bogs, transition mires, and alkaline fens is considered “bad”, according to the report by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS).
Nature restoration
The Council of Ministers is yet to formally adopt the law. The text sets targets to restore 30% of drained peatlands under agricultural use by 2030, 40% by 2040 and 50% by 2050.
“While this will mean a change for some farmers, it will be voluntary and land should not need to come out of agricultural production,” according to the IPCC.
The targets will also increase the amount of landscape available for native flora and fauna with more sensitive management and restoration methods, the IPCC said.
“It has been estimated that every €1 spent in nature restoration returns between €4-€38 worth of ecological benefits. An investment in nature is an investment in our future,” the IPCC said.
By restoring peatland, biodiversity that evolved in Ireland will be “safeguarded”, the IPCC said, while at the same time re-establishing Ireland’s resilience to climate change.