The National Peatland Action Programme

The National Peatland Action Programme is a 5 year plan of peatland restoration in Wales.

Welsh peatlands need urgent action to address the nature and climate emergencies.

Peatlands support a variety of habitats and species, they:

capture and store carbon
regulate greenhouse gases
maintain biodiversity
regulate water

Funded by Welsh Government, this programme was set up to coordinate peatland restoration action in Wales.

Restoration work

The National Peatland Action Programme has six priorities:

Peatland erosion
Peatland drainage
Sustainable management of blanket peats
Sustainable management of lowland peats
The restoration of afforested peatlands
The gradual restoration of our highest carbon-peatlands

Restoration action on over 1650 hectares in the first two years (2020-22) means the programme surpassed its initial restoration targets of 600-800 hectares of public and private land every year.

The programme will also safeguard peatlands that are in good and recovering condition.

Grants to restore peatland

We have grants available for peatland restoration projects.

Wales Peatland Data Portal

The Wales Peatland Data Portal shows where peatlands are and the areas that need restoring. The interactive maps include:

habitats that are supported by peat
estimates of the carbon stored in Welsh peatlands
estimates of greenhouse gas emissions

We will update the Portal as peatland is restored. This will include the effects on peatland condition, biodiversity and mitigating climate change.

Open the Portal

Read more about Peatland Data Portal layers

Follow the work of the programme

#HighNatureLowCarbon

Twitter @PeatlandCymru
Facebook @NatResWales

View our YouTube playlist of videos about peatland restoration across Wales

Read our fourth year report (2023-24) (PDF)

Read our third year report (2022-23) (PDF)

Read our second year report (2021-22) (PDF)

Read our first year report (2020-21) (PDF)

National Peatland Action Programme 2020-2025 (PDF)

National Peatland Action Programme – Key Actions Years 1-5 (PDF)

Education resources about peatlands

Peatland Restoration Activities Glossary (PDF)

Video about why peatlands are important and why we are restoring them

A blog by one of our Project Officers about discovering an unusual alga - Natural Resources Wales / An Alga That Caught The Eye!

Wales Peatland Action

The programme has a strategic national role to support the local Wales Peatland Action projects across the country, some managed by us and others by external partners.

LIFE Quaking Bogs

New LIFE for Welsh Raised Bogs

Anglesey and Llŷn Fens LIFE project

Upper Conwy Catchment Project

Marches Mosses BogLIFE

Lost Peatlands Project

Contact us

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