For Peat’s Sake! How restoring peatland can help your farm business – A Soil Association event

Practical event looking at the benefits of peatland restoration for upland farms.

Come and find out what funding is available and how restoring peatlands can reduce black loss, make the least accessible areas of the hill more productive, reduce flooding, retain water in dry weather and improve soil.

Farming and Conservation advisor Sandra Stewart will lead a farm visit to Braeleny Farm, where farmer David Higginson has installed 100 peat dams with an Agri-Environment Climate Scheme (AECS) grant. The event will include a demonstration of a digger creating a peat dam.

“Adding the peat dams,” says Sandra Stewart, “raises the water levels in the ditches and slows the water flow, helping to restore natural flood management.

“And it’s a fantastically effective natural carbon storage system. Also for biodiversity – the pools created encourage amphibians, insects and dragonflies, which is great for the whole ecosystem.”

Read one Aberdeenshire farmer’s story of the effects of peatland restoration here.

As well as offering an opportunity to see peatland restoration in action on farm, the event will cover funding possibilities with the Peatland ACTION scheme, which covers 100 per cent of capital costs, and through AECS, where peatland restoration means increased points weighting.

Speakers are from ScotFWAG, IUCN UK Peatland Programme and SNH Peatland ACTION.

The Heather Trust will lead a visit to Braeleny, where a digger demonstration will show how farmer David Higginson has installed 100 peat dams.

Free of charge to farmers and land managers. Booking is required. 

Book your free place now for Callander, 30 October, by clicking here.

For more information get in touch with Jane on 0131 666 2474 or email.

Funding is provided through SRDP Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund (which is jointly funded by the Scottish Government and the European Union) with partner funding from Scottish Water, RSPB Scotland and The Prince of Wales’s Charitable Foundation. (This event is part of a wider KTIF programme, Farming With Nature.)