Reviewing the wide range of benefits of restored peatlands in Scotland

Peatlands are a highly valued part of the Scottish landscape but have suffered extensive degradation due to a range of factors including historic land use. The Scottish Climate Change Plan 2026-2040 recognises the wide range of benefits that can be delivered by healthy functioning peatlands and has set a target of restoring 400,000 ha by 2040. Between 2012 and March 2026, the Peatland ACTION programme and other funding streams have delivered 105,000 ha of restoration intervention across Scotland.

Near-natural, functioning peatlands are acclaimed for delivering a variety of benefits, such as carbon storage, flood alleviation, drought resilience, wildfire alleviation and increased biodiversity. The delivery of these ecosystem services is compromised by degradation at a cost to society. Currently, there is some uncertainty around the extent and timescales over which benefits return following restoration intervention on degraded peatlands. This is because the evidence base supporting these benefits can vary, often with a relatively limited number of studies available for any given aspect.

There is a need to assess the evidence base for a range of ecosystem properties across restored Scottish peatland and identify how these may translate into benefits to nature, society and the economy. There is also a need to identify key gaps in knowledge that should be filled to support a strategic implementation of peatland restoration to maximise the delivery of benefits.