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Tough policy challenges uncovered through patchy peat project

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A collaborative research programme pairing academic expertise with insights from Shropshire and Staffordshire farms has uncovered some tough policy challenges.

The Environment-Agency funded Patchy Peat Solutions Project was one of 13 projects across England which made up the £3.1 million Lowland agricultural peat water discovery pilot.

The pilot, funded by the UK Government, drew on local partnerships to understand how water can be better managed to rewet and preserve peat soils.

Peat soils are highly productive, with three-quarters of the lowland peat in England used for farming.

However, as they are drained and cultivated, the peat oxidises to form carbon dioxide  – increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Re-wetting peat has the potential to reduce these emissions, keeping carbon in the soil.

University researchers, consortium partners and farmers on six within Lonco, Strine and Aqualate river catchments explored what opportunities rewetting lowland peat in the region could offer both the environment and the farmers who work the soil – and how feasible these options could be.

Professor Karl Behrendt and Dr Iona Huang from Harper Adams examined the economic and social sustainability of the opportunities which rewetting could offer, while the University’s Scott Kirby and Wynn Morgan looked at the practicalities from a farm business perspective.

Their work- and the views of the farmers and a diverse array of companies involved in the project over the last year - has indicated these plans may not be without their challenges. These include the lack of available private finance, concerns over regulations and compliance, and an uncertain policy picture.

The scale of the task ahead was set out to industry stakeholders at a Natural Capital Symposium at ÎÞÂ붯»­ which marked the conclusion of the Project.

Dr Julia Casperd, who worked with both the academic teams and the farmers involved, said: “The farm-level insights suggested that rewetting of lowland peat is not feasible without support from environmental schemes or private finance. There are substantial costs associated with regulations and compliance which act to limit the scale of rewetting.

“These limitations could threaten the pockets of lowland peat characteristic of the Shropshire landscape and the land uses on this peat without further help.

Professor Behrendt, Elizabeth Creak Chair in Agri-Tech Economic Modelling, added “It’s clear sustainable exploitation of these on-farm opportunities is going to require adaptation rather than transformation. There is a tension between environmental benefits and economic viability when it comes to rewetting lowland agricultural peat.

“Our research suggests policymakers will need to align environmental goals and farming economic viability - and financial incentives need to be long-term and multi-year at market value.

Dr Casperd added: “The farmers who took part in the project were keen to highlight the fact that any rewetting of land parcels was not a short-term initiative - the implications of this land-use change, and the risks involved, needed to be insured against.”

With the new Peat Map due out in March, the work of Harper Adams Professor Simon Jeffery, alongside Jackie Symmons, Downforce Technologies and Agrivation, also helped to test out how closely this map relates to the actual situation on the ground - while Dr Rob Low of Rigare Ltd characterised the hydrology on the farms and assessed the feasibility of rewetting.

Professor Jeffery said: “The project was very interesting.

“It highlighted a lot of discrepancy between where the England Peat Map suggested there was peat and where peat was found.

“Future work should include a focus on identifying where these carbon-rich soils are, and how deep they are, to allow effective monitoring of their condition and restoration as well as accurate quantification of carbon stocks across the Shropshire landscape.”

As the Patchy Peat Solutions Project draws to its conclusion, its researchers have thanked the Environment Agency for their support over the past year and all consortium partners involved - particularly in-kind contributors Clive Blacker of Agrivation Ltd, Downforce Technologies Ltd and Legacy Habitat Banks.

Judith Bennett, Peatland Team Leader and Senior Advisor to the Environment Agency, praised the way each partner worked together throughout the project at the symposium.

She said: “The collaborative and research-based approach taken is exactly what we were hoping for from this pilot, bringing together academics, businesses, and farmers to build our knowledge of the issues and potential solutions.”

And Dr Casperd added: “There are many lessons learnt.

“We will now build on this with future work to drive sustainable land-use on lowland peat. This work is currently supporting the Local Nature Recovery Strategy and will inform our feedback during the Land Use Framework consultation.”