Carbon Store

Peat is rich in fossil carbon, removed from the atmosphere by plants and accumulated over thousands of years. Peatlands are an important carbon store. They can lock up carbon for thousands of years. It is estimated that peatlands contain an average of the order of 5,000 tonnes of carbon per hectare. Drainage and destruction of raised bogs results in the rapid loss of the stored carbon in the form of greenhouse gases, a substatial part as methane, as the peat decomposes.

The wildlife importance of many raised bogs is recognised in their notification as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) or as Areas of Special Scientific Interest (ASSIs) in Northern Ireland under the Nature Conservation and Amenity Lands (NI) Order 1985. More recently EC Council Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds (79/409/EEC) allows important sites fulfilling specific criteria to be designated as Special Protection Areas (SPA), the EC Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora (92/43/EEC) frequently referred to as the Habitat Regulations similarly allows designations as Speacial Areas of Conservation (SAC).

The thin living layer that carpets the bog consists largely of Sphagnum mosses, ranging from brilliant green to ochre red. Unusual plants, such as the sundews, butterworts and bladderworts, supplement their diet in their nutrient-poor environment by catching and digesting insects. This very sterility prevents other, less specialised species from colonising peat bogs, but it is also one of the reasons why bog peat is valued so highly by horticulturists as a growing medium.

Raised bogs are important for the conservation of several rare plants and animals. Some of our rarest insects, including the large heath butterfly, mire pill beetle and several species of dragonflies, thrive in the wet conditions. Plants such as bog rosemary are found nowhere else in the UK. The mossy hummocks and pools provide vital nesting and feeding grounds for wading birds. These birds depend on Europe's disappearing wetlands.

The overall mixture of plants and animals make raised bogs unique and valuable places. They become islands of typically upland species in lowland areas. Breeding birds such as the teal, golden plover and dunlin are usually found only in the far north, but on some raised bogs they can be found alongside more southerly species such as the nightjar.

As with much legislation chronology plays an important role, and in the case of the extant mineral extraction planning consents granted in the 1950’s on Thorne and Hatfield Moors they pre-date wildlife legislation and for local authorities or government to intervene and revoke consents incurs considerable cost in terms of compensation payments.

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