IUCN UK Peatland Programme Press Release
Issued by the Scottish Wildlife Trust on behalf of the IUCN

 

Gardeners could prevent the emission of around one million tonnes of CO2 each year simply by avoiding buying peat-based products and using environmentally friendly alternatives instead in their garden, it was revealed today (Wed 31 March). 

 

Wildlife organisations in Scotland are urging gardeners to go peat-free this Easter and warn that the removal of peat from bogs to make grow bags and compost is destroying one of our most precious wildlife habitats and contributing to climate change.

 

The extraction of peat, a type of soil which only forms after years of accumulation in water-logged and boggy conditions, removes the living layer of the bog itself.  By causing the site to drain, this also releases carbon stored in the peat over thousands of years.  Surveys have shown that most gardeners are unaware of the problems caused by commercial peat mining from peat bogs. 

 

Clifton Bain of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) UK Peatlands Programme said:  “Peatlands are like Scotland’s rainforests in climate change terms.  It is wholly irresponsible to be destroying these huge natural stores of carbon for gardening. We need to keep the peat in the bogs.  Bogs are an important part of our biodiversity with unusual plants and animals threatened by the destruction of their habitat for peat extraction. By simply using the widely available peat alternatives based on composted plant materials, gardeners can not only helps save our peatlands but will also reduce waste problems.”

 

Tony King of the Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT) said:  “Scotland’s Lowland raised bogs are of international importance for their wildlife and yet few people realise that buying peat is directly threatening these habitats.  As well as asking gardeners to switch away from peat to the alternatives, we need the Scottish Government to ensure no new planning permissions for peat extraction are approved.”

 

Craig Macadam of Buglife said:  “Peat extraction threatens wildlife in many European countries with over 60% of our supplies coming from abroad. We must avoid imported peat as well as protecting our own remaining sites in Scotland.  The Government must make their intention to end the retailing of peat a clear priority and take every step possible to halt its use”.

 

ENDS

For more information, please contact:

Nicola McGovern, SWT Press Officer
0131 312 4742
 

Editors Notes

1. The IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) UK Peatland Programme, based in Edinburgh, exists to promote peatland restoration in the UK and advocates the multiple benefits of peatlands through partnerships, strong science, sound policy and effective practice. The work of the Peatland Programme is overseen by a coalition of environmental bodies including the Scottish Wildlife Trust, John Muir Trust, Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, RSPB, North Pennines AONB, Moors for the Future and the University of East London. The Programme is funded by the Peter De Haan Charitable Trust.

2. Garden survey results from ‘Gardens, gardeners and the environment’, October 2007.  The data draws upon the results of the HTA’s latest consumer research.  Over the period from 1 to 7 June 2007, a representative sample of 1014 GB adults were interviewed at home on behalf of the HTA by Ipsos Mori as part of their Capibus Omnibus survey

3. In its recent Act on CO2 campaign DEFRA announced that “For most garden uses, these alternatives are just as good as peat based composts and they don’t lead to the loss of valuable peat bogs.”  A recent Which? report found that peat free products out-perform their peat-based equivalents for a number of uses.  www.direct.gov.uk/buyingcompost

4. The UK’s Greenhouse Gas Inventory records emissions of 431,000 tonnes a year for peat extraction from UK sites. However, as over 60% of the peat that we use in the UK is imported (mainly from the Republic of Ireland and the Baltics), this is not a true reflection of total emissions from our use of peat for horticulture.

5. The Scottish Wildlife Trust acts as the press office on behalf of the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) UK Peatland Programme.