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Customers:

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Underpinning knowledge

Sources of funding

TSB/NERC - To gain and embed scientific understanding of the effects of moorland restoration on surface water quality; KTP Partnership 8099; 2010-13; £97,935

SW Water - Extended monitoring of water quality responses to moorland restoration in Exmoor National Park; 2011-2015; £633k

HEIF and the EA - Providing an evidence base for the restoration of Culm grasslands to understand impacts on water resources of southwest England under changing climates; 2012-2014; £101k

UoE - Understanding the impact of moorland restoration on water quantity and biodiversity; 2010-2013; £30k and Determining the potential of peatland restoration for carbon sequestration and climate change mitigation; 2011-2014; £30k

Peer reviewed papers

Grand-Clement, E., Smith, D., Anderson, K., Ross, M., Luscombe, D., Gatis, N. and Brazier, R.E. (2013) Evaluating ecosystem goods and services after restoration of marginal upland peatlands in south-west England.  Journal of Applied Ecology. doi: 10.1111/1365-2664.12039

Home > WaterR2B > Sectors > Water Utilities > The Mires-on-the-moors project: Can restoring moorlands enhance water supply, improve water quality and store more carbon in the landscape?

The Mires-on-the-moors project: Can restoring moorlands enhance water supply, improve water quality and store more carbon in the landscape?

The challenge

On the uplands of Exmoor and Dartmoor, generations of peat-cutting and the creation of drainage ditches has caused the mires to dry out, which reduces the water-holding capacity of the moors. This increases the fluctuation in river flows throughout the year, making flooding more likely and decreasing the reliability of water supply in dry periods. In addition, soil erosion and the associated loss of soil carbon makes river water more expensive to treat.

South West Water needs to establish how moorlands can best be restored to deliver multiple environmental benefits and through long term monitoring establish whether restoration is cost effective.

The solution

Restoration of degraded moorlands can involve a variety of techniques, including blocking drainage ditches and building small dams to retain water.

Researchers from Exeter University, led by Professor Brazier, have installed the most comprehensive network of monitoring equipment in any UK upland to collect data from the mires of Exmoor and Dartmoor for two years before restoration takes place. Their research has established an evidence base for the pre-restoration functioning of damaged moorlands (2011-2013) which will be used to compare with post-restoration data to determine the effectiveness of moorland restoration across Exmoor and Dartmoor (2013-2015). 

A variety of novel monitoring techniques have been employed, including arrays of water table depth sensors that record data at over 200 locations on the moorland and send these data back in real-time to the University. In addition, Dr Karen Anderson has worked with the team alongside an SME QuestUAV Ltd to pioneer the use of remote-controlled aerial vehicles to capture highly detailed images describing the wetness of restoration sites. This data capture will enable better and more directed restoration of remote moorland sites to take place and a better spatial understanding of the success of restoration. 

Resulting benefits

Increasing water storage of moorland reduces fluctuations of river flows, making flooding less likely, and enhancing the amount of water that is present in rivers, during drought periods.  The restoration should also reduce the sediment and carbon entering rivers and ensure that water is less discoloured prior to abstraction. Water carrying less sediment is ca. 20%cheaper to treat, and requires fewer chemicals and carbon to turn it into top quality tap water.

Martin Ross, from South West Water, said: “Our Upstream Thinking Project is at the cutting edge of how water is managed in a sustainable way in the UK.”

Future directions

Future research will apply techniques developed with SW Water’s Upstream Thinking project to other UK uplands that have been degraded. Moorland-scale understanding of landscape restoration will support the IUCN call for restoration of 1 Million hectares of peat restoration in the UK to sequester carbon and protect these fragile ecosystems.

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