Peatland monitoring in Scotland secures major grant boost

A leading nature agency is backing a university project to support peatland recovery efforts in Scotland.

Eleanor Birch, Tilda Tarrant and Dr Nicholle Bell input monitoring data at Ardtornish Estate in Morven
Image credit Bell group, School of Chemistry, University of Edinburgh

A £60,000 grant awarded by NatureScot Peatland ACTION will enable the University of Edinburgh to use new cutting-edge technologies to track peatland restoration at a site in the West Highlands.

As one of the largest degraded ecosystems in Scotland, yet one of its most important carbon sinks, national efforts are taking place to conserve and restore damaged peat bogs. This effort is being led by Peatland ACTION, funded by Scottish Government and delivered in partnership with NatureScot and other agencies.

Peatlands store vast quantities of carbon, which can be released to the atmosphere when they are degraded, so restoring peatlands is an important solution to tackling the ever-growing climate crisis. 

Healthy peatlands also play a vital role in flood regulation and source water quality and are a unique habitat for many species of wildlife.

To fully understand the impacts and effectiveness of peatland recovery, monitoring needs to take place before, during and beyond restoration, experts say. 

Monitoring efforts

The new relationship between the University of Edinburgh and NatureScot Peatland ACTION, will secure monitoring project funding for three years of the University’s research at Ardtornish Estate in Morvern.

One of six partnerships the University has made for a programme it is leading to combat climate change and nature loss in Scotland, its work with Ardtornish Estate will see 150 hectares of blanket bog – alongside another 1,000 hectares of woodland – restored at the estate over 50 years.

Alongside capturing carbon, increasing biodiversity and delivering community benefits, a key element of the partnership will also see the site used as an outdoor research lab for research with academics and students at the University. 

Onboard view from the drone during peatland survey work at the Ardtornish Estate
Image credit: Airborne Research and Innovation, The University of Edinburgh)

Innovative approach

The NatureScot Peatland ACTION funding will be used to build on baseline monitoring funded by the University alongside contributions from Ardtornish Estate.

It will support research – led by Nicholle Bell, a senior lecturer in the School of Chemistry – that will take a multi-method approach to assess carbon and biodiversity changes over the course of the peatland restoration efforts. 

Alongside established monitoring methods, the team will use a range of new techniques with the aim of providing a clearer picture of how peatlands are changing upon restoration.

The innovative approach includes monitoring environmental DNA by looking at fungi and bacteria present at the site to analyse the condition of the peat.

Extensive drone surveys – including RGB photography, multi-spectral sensing and LiDAR – carried out by the School of Geosciences’ Airborne Research and Innovation facility, will also be used to build up a detailed picture of the site’s health, biodiversity and microtopography. 

Three PhD students, funded through the University’s Forest and Peatland Programme, will play a central role in the research effort. 

Their research will generate essential data on carbon dynamics and biodiversity at the site, providing the evidence base needed to strengthen monitoring approaches.

Researchers hope the monitoring will help shape future policy and practice into peatland recovery efforts in Scotland and further afield.

Climate ambitions

The project is a key component the University’s ambitious drive to become carbon neutral by 2040.

Working with a range of partners and landowners, the University will help plant more than two million trees and restore nearly 1,400 hectares of peatland across Scotland to capture and store carbon from the atmosphere. 

Importantly, the benefits will go beyond carbon capture. Rebuilding natural habitats is expected to boost wildlife populations and encourage native species including butterflies, waterfowl and newts.

Effective peatland monitoring is key to being able to see the true environmental impact of any restoration work. Thanks to NatureScot Peatland ACTION, we’ll be able to expand our methods of monitoring and truly understand how these ecosystems are responding to the recovery efforts taking place under the University’s Forest and Peatlands programme.

Nicholle Bell Senior Lecturer at the University of Edinburgh's School of Chemistry

We are delighted that the University of Edinburgh have taken up the opportunity offered by Peatland ACTION monitoring project funding and hope it inspires others to do the same. Providing funding allows us to expand our monitoring efforts and benefit from external expertise, enabling a deeper understanding of peatland restoration outcomes.

This new project is monitoring an eroded blanket bog using traditional methods alongside innovative tools like ultra-high-resolution UAV surveys and eDNA sampling – a first for us. Peatland erosion is linked to significant greenhouse gas emissions and loss of other ecosystem services. The multi-faceted monitoring approach will not only offer new insights into restoration impacts on biodiversity, hydrology and carbon quality, but also include development of guidelines for novel monitoring techniques, which is vital for shaping our future work.

Chris Boyce Peatland ACTION Monitoring Officer, at NatureScot

This grant is great news for our partnership with the University of Edinburgh – a collaboration that is enabling us to ask questions and run research projects about this land that otherwise we couldn’t possibly resource – even if we had thought of them. We love the idea that this is becoming an outdoor living laboratory – with the University as the academic driver, and one of the leading natural science centres in Britain.

Hugh Raven Managing Director of Ardtornish

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2025
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