A new voluntary certification aiming to help restore Ireland’s peatlands and boost climate resilience by allowing farmers and landowners to demonstrate the environmental benefit of their activities has been launched for public consultation.
Restoration of 700,000 hectares of degraded peatlands could help to avoid up to 2 million tonnes of carbon emissions per year, according to estimates. The peatland standard developed by the not-for-profit Peatland Finance Ireland (PFI) is expected to help landowners attract funding to accelerate peatland revival.
Those wishing to restore peatlands on their own land will be able to fund their projects by offering verified ecosystem certificates encompassing carbon, biodiversity and water benefits to organisations wanting to invest in and support conservation and sustainability initiatives.
Irish peatlands are waterlogged, carbon-rich habitats for diverse species which regulate water flow, quality and flood risks. However, many are degraded due to human activities. The new science-based certification creates a methodology to quantify improvements across emission reductions, water storage and quality, biodiversity, ecosystem functions, community benefits and wildfire prevention.
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“The new peatland standard recognises the environmental, economic and societal benefits from reviving these vital ecosystems,” said Dr Shane McGuinness of PFI.
Quantifying benefits will unlock financing for community restoration work, which is only possible when funding comes from a diverse and blended range of sources, he said. “It is encouraging to see businesses, alongside national and European public bodies, providing blended financing to support positive environmental impact.”
Development of the standard was supported by a €495,000 commitment from Amazon’s Right Now Climate Fund, and by the National Parks & Wildlife Service; the Department of Agriculture and the Natural Capital Financing Facility of the European Investment Bank.
“Peatlands are vital stores of carbon, but their degraded state means they currently release over 2 million tonnes of greenhouse gases every year,” said John Boumphrey, Amazon’s UK and Ireland country manager. “We’re supporting development of the peatland standard for Ireland because properly financing restoration projects can bring great benefits to both local communities and the broader environment.”
Due to go live early next year, certification will comply with international environmental principles and align with the EU Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Certification Framework. Independent third-party auditors, working to ISO standards, will validate and verify ecosystem improvement claims. Consultation seeking input from farmers and landowners, community networks, potential project developers, investors and the public is open till December 5th.
In 2019, Amazon cofounded The Climate Pledge, committing to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. Its Right Now Climate Fund is a $100 million fund for climate resilience and biodiversity projects, with €20 million committed to nature projects across Europe.
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