HEAD FOR THE HILLS
therefore the peat itself. Te annual vegetation surveys carried out by our peatland conservation officers should demonstrate the effect of the restoration works on these previously damaged habitats.
Our vision
Peatlands are truly special, from their ability to help mitigate climate change and flooding to the specially- adapted unique species that call them home. Te work we do is helping to reverse the damage to peatlands throughout Cumbria, and our vision is that all peatlands in the county are once again functioning, flourishing ecosystems.
Assessing the data
To assess the impact that these restoration works are having, we have monitoring equipment installed on 17 sites throughout Cumbria, including some that have had restoration works and some yet to have works carried out. Te equipment installed is part of the IUCN’s Eyes on the Bog scheme, which is a UK-wide citizen science programme. On each site we have 10 monitoring points, where annual vegetation surveys are carried out, and at five of these points we also have a surface-level rod, which indicates the change in the surface
Before
level of the peat over time; a rust rod, which gives an indication of the water table by showing the lowest point that has been consistently exposed to oxygen and has therefore rusted; and a dipwell containing a datalogger which collects water table data every two hours. Te data from the rust rods and surface-level rods is collected quarterly by a group of brilliant volunteers, who go out onto sites all year round to collect this data for us. We are hoping that, once analysed, this data will help to show the impact of the restoration works on the water table, and
After
Tanks to our funders
We would like to thank our funders for enabling us to carry out survey and restoration works this year, including DEFRA’s Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme, Westmorland and Furness’ Cumbria Innovative Flood Resilience Programme, United Utilities, Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, the Environment Agency, Lowther Estates and the National Trust.
Susie Webb is the Trust’s Acting Peatland Team Manager. Susie has worked for the Trust’s peatland team since 2015.
Bare peat in Deepdale, Matterdale, before and after restoration.
Cumbrian Wildlife | November 2025 27
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