THE EXMOOR MIRE RESTORATION PROJECT

LOCATION
The Exmoor Mire Restoration Project is currently targeting up to 20 sites across the moorlands of Exmoor National Park which straddles the counties of Devon and Somerset.

The project recognises the wealth of ecosystem services the moorland habitats provide1, particularly in the context of future climate change. These include the following services: Climate regulation: Worldwide peatlands are huge carbon stores, but damaged areas release CO2 through oxidation processes. Restoration halts oxidation and promotes active peat growth which absorbs C02 from the atmosphere. Water and erosion regulation: The retention of precipitation in uplands helps maintain stream-flow during dry periods. Reduction of upland stream response times and flows following high levels of precipitation will potentially reduce downstream erosion and flooding risks. Water supply / purification: Restoration of natural flow regimes will improve water quality, benefiting river life including salmon and trout. Sense of place / cultural heritage: Traditional management with grazing animals remain an essential for keeping restored moorland in good condition.

PROJECT AIMS & ACHIEVEMENTS

The overarching aim of the Mire Project is to restore the National Parks peatland habitats, including blanket bog, valley bogs and fens on a landscape scale. It recognises that the UK is home to 20% of the global resource of blanket bog with Exmoor being a primary location for this internationally important habitat. These hydrologically sensitive ecosystems on Exmoor have been impacted by past drainage, peat cutting and poor land-management practices. In total the continuing restoration undertaken through the project has led to SSSI recovery from moorland drainage in nine Site of Special Interest (SSSI) units covering 907ha. Over 28.5 km of ditch has been blocked, with 11,200 bales and 2,350 dams. As a result nearly 200 hectares of damaged mire has now been re-wetted. The project has used historic aerial photography and LIDAR techniques to target restoration activity, focusing on parts of the moorland significantly affected by drainage and agricultural improvement.
Use of LIDAR to identify peat cuttings and ditches to target restoration (ENPA, 2008)

Restored wetland at Blackpitts (ENPA, 2008)

The restoration costs of 140,000 have been met from the Project budget and Exmoor Environmental Sensitive Area (ESA) scheme funding 80% of the capital works. The project has now been extended up to 2010 through financial savings made through the capital works funding from Natural England.

Taken from Smith, D. (2008) Exmoor Mire Restoration Project: Project Report. Available online on the projects website

Communicating the aims and results of the project has concentrated on explaining why moorland re-wetting is important (i.e. multifunctional service delivery), explaining that reinstating areas of wet habitat will not affect public access (in the context of a popular National Park for recreation), and that traditional livestock grazing will remain an essential and sustainable management technique for conserving the moorlands in the future. Guided walks and landowner open days, along with frequent press, radio and TV coverage, has helped get these messages across. Further community involvement will be facilitated through the forthcoming HLF Landscape Partnership-funded project Moor-to-Sea.

A bid for 5 million is being submitted by South West Water and project partners to Ofwat for funding in the Periodic Review 2009 round. It is hoped that this will fund a joint South-West moors restoration project on Exmoor and Dartmoor in the period 2010- 2015. If successful, this successor project will be something that the SWFL Programme should tap into for mutual benefit. Project links: 5. A Palette of Functional Areas and Features 6. & 7: Storylines of Change 9: Tools of Engagement

LINKS TO THE SWFL PROGRAMME

The Exmoor Mire Restoration Project is an excellent example of how restoring ecosystems and natural landscape functions can result in multiple public benefits on a landscape scale. The use of historic aerial photographs and LIDAR imagery have been used effectively as tools to understand how mans actions in the past can be targeted and reversed to recreate stronger landscapes for the future. It is also an example of a project where biodiversity-driven works have delivered wide landscape-scale benefits to the area and beyond, whilst physical and visible changes to the landscape itself have been extremely subtle.

PROJECT CONTACT DETAILS / FURTHER INFORMATION:

Dr David Smith Mire Restoration Project Officer Exmoor National Park Authority Exmoor House Dulverton Somerset TA22 9HL Tel: 01398 322290 Email: DMSmith@exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk Web: www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk/Mire