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Project title

Management of peatland forests for climate, biodiversity and water quality

Primary Funding Agency

Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Co-Funding Organisation(s)

Lead Organisation

University of Limerick (UL)

Lead Applicant

Not listed

Project Abstract

Forests have a key role to play in mitigating climate change. This needs to be balanced against the need to deliver a range of social, economic, and environmental services. 38% of Ireland's forests are on peat and there is an urgent need for empirical data on carbon dynamics on greenhouse gas exchange to support national climate policy, international reporting requirements, and the identification of sustainable emission reduction pathways. Alongside these challenges is the need to identify alternative management options for peatland forests that improve their sustainability. PeatFor addresses these challenges through a set of complementary Tasks that will set up a series of field experiments to assess carbon dynamics and greenhouse gas exchange, impacts of forest management interventions, including rewetting, on biodiversity. The results of these field investigations will be combined in a modelling framework to assess the current and future sustainability of peatland forest. In addition to supporting climate and biodiversity policy, PeatFor will train five PhD level scientists and one Post-Doctoral scientist. These scientists will be trained in state-of-the-art techniques that will provide them with the skills to support the continued and evolving need for interdisciplinary scientific research to support the multiple aims of sustainable forest management and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Grant Approved

�2,746,011.90

Research Hub

Climate Change

Research Theme

2. Ireland's Future Climate, its Impacts, and Adaptation Options

Start Date

01/12/2024

Initial Projected Completion Date

31/11/2029