Ariane Burgess, the Scottish Green MSP for the Highlands & Islands, is hosting a Parliamentary Exhibition this week on peatland restoration.
The exhibition, brought to Holyrood by the Crichton Carbon Centre, seeks to enthuse MSPs about the importance of this globally rare habitat and vital carbon store.
Ahead of the exhibition, Ms Burgess said:
“Peatland restoration has the potential to be a new rural industry and offers a different way of looking after our land – building value for the communities and young people living there.
“Greens in Government have secured £250m of investment in peatland restoration until 2030 and locally we’ve seen hundreds of thousands supporting projects across the region.”
In Glencoe, the Nature Restoration Fund recently granted £249,736 to a peatland restoration project, £236,000 has been granted to a peatland restoration channel in Lochaber and RSPB Scotland’s Forsinard Flows nature reserve received crucial funding from the Scottish Government’s Peatland Action initiative for work to help repair and restore drained and damaged blanket bog across its peatland habitat.
“I trust my colleagues will engage with the exhibition and consider the ways their work can support this new rural industry.
“The Agriculture and Rural Communities Bill, for example, could mean more support goes to farmers to restore and protect peatland.
“These changes are not only important for our communities, but also for our planet.”
