A TEAM consisting mostly of volunteers has been celebrating a milestone achievement at Dove Stone.
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) has been planting sphagnum moss plants, in partnership with landowner United Utilities, since taking over restoration of the Greenfield valley site in 2010.
The two organisations currently help to fund the initiative, in conjunction with the Government’s Nature for Climate Peatland Restoration Grant.
Now, one million sphagnum moss plants have been planted at Dove Stone – which remains a popular place for visitors from the local area and beyond.
Seen as vital in the fight against climate change, sphagnum moss plants are building blocks of peat bogs which act as a natural filter for the water entering the reservoir chain below the moors and support wildlife.
Peatland covers around 12 per cent of land in the UK and stores over three billion tonnes of carbon, however over 80 per cent of it is degraded.
Sphagnum moss helps peat stay wet and hold water, making it resilient against fire as well as slowing the flow of water from upland areas during times of heavy rain.
As summers continue to become warmer and drier, the risk of fire and drought greatly increases.
After a short break over the spring and summer months, planting will resume again at Dove Stone in August.
A local volunteer, who wished to stay anonymous, said being part of the team that has planted one million sphagnum moss plants has been “incredibly rewarding”.
They added: “Every plant may be small but it’s a big step towards restoring the peat in our fight against climate change.
“This is our local spot, so it feels really special to be helping our local nature and there is always a great community spirit. There’s always a chance for more people to come along and volunteer, as we’re never short of needing helping hands.”
Kate Hanley, Site Manager at Dove Stone, commented: “The planting of the millionth Sphagnum moss is a celebration of all the hard work and dedication of everyone involved in the project, especially our volunteers.
“The internationally important blanket bog at Dove Stone took around 10,000 years to develop but has been degraded over the last 200 years. Reaching this milestone is an incredible step in restoring healthy peat bogs to lock away carbon, reduce fire and flood risk, and create an amazing place for nature and people to explore.”
Ed Lawrance, Catchment Partnership Officer for United Utilities, said: “This is a fantastic milestone for the partnership to hit at Dove Stone. As well as helping to reduce fire and flood risk, it plays an important part in helping to improve the water quality coming off the catchment and into our reservoirs.
“I’d like to thank all the volunteers and teams involved in helping to get us to this point.”
You must be logged in to post a comment.