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Project title

Peat-Hub-Ireland

Primary Funding Agency

Environmental Protection Agency

Co-Funding Organisation(s)

Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine (DAFM)

Lead Organisation

University College Dublin (UCD)

Lead Applicant

Florence Renou-Wilson

Project Abstract

Over the last two decades, growing global interest in peatlands has been guided by the recognition that peatlands form important natural capital and by the growing apprehension that peatland degradation will lead to a significant negative impact to the global climate change. The Irish peatland research scene has mirrored this awareness (with cross-sectoral and multi-disciplinary agendas) thus enabling policy initiatives, such as the National Peatland Strategy, to be enshrined into the sustainability principles. However, it is time to assess how much headway Ireland has made in sustainably managing its peatland resource. The Peat-Hub-Ireland project will collate the research carried out to date on Irish peatlands and explore current and future challenges through the lens of progress on the path to sustainability. Such analyses will initially gather, map and join all past and present research across all disciplines and, therefore, will be a holistic synthesis. Robust methodologies will allow us to collate relevant information for the analyses, mapping and investigation of potential synergistic effects. Factsheets will be produced for each general theme to deliver a clear picture of trends and risks associated with Irish peatlands while providing expert knowledge on opportunities. Furthermore, such analyses will permit knowledge gaps and uncertainties to be identified, thereby informing the next generation of peatland research in Ireland. This analysis will be presented within a global perspective where emerging research and practical peatland work in the temperate climate zone can provide essential guidance. Thus, this project will deliver a cohesive evidence base to support peatland action and underpin future policy development and implementation. The overarching aim is to collate evidence to encourage research, local communities and policy makers to move towards an unbiased evidence-based position with regard to better planning around this major national resource and to successfully implement its sustainable management in the future. The specific objectives of this project are: 1. To compile a glossary of terms associated with peatlands and contextualised for Irish stakeholders. 2. To develop rigorous methodologies (identification of stakeholders and different survey techniques) to source, compile and validate all available information. 3. To map, analyse and synthesise the data, identifying linkages and gaps, while complementing the expert knowledge from emerging international research studies. 4. To generate factsheets on identified research topics to present trends, risks and opportunities. 5. To deliver an initial database of collected information and to identify the requirements for a long-term repository of peatland knowledge in Ireland for all audiences, as well as establish links to international databases. 6. To make recommendations to support sustainable peatland action to inform policy development and implementation. Building on existing expertise and extensive collaboration network, the team will be able to deliver the objectives of this project by facilitating cross-disciplinary and multi-level exchange to provide effective outputs.

Grant Approved

�83,189.20

Research Hub

Natural Environment

Research Theme

n/a

Start Date

31/03/2023

Initial Projected Completion Date

30/03/2024