For peat’s sake, stop
Burning Britain’s moorland ‘is as bad for the environment as cutting down rainforests’
It is crucial the peat stays wet to keep the carbon in the ground
ROB STONEMAN WILDLIFE TRUST LANDSCAPE EXPERT
tons of CO2 will be released. Natural England says around 260,000 tons are likely to be released each year from burning peatlands.
Stopping it would be equivalent to taking over 175,000 cars off the road.
Campaigners say the fires degrade the remaining peat, which means it is less able to slow the flow of water and so increases flooding risks. Hebden Bridge, West Yorks, submerged six times in five years, is downstream of several grouse moors.
Wildfires are another risk. Green groups point to the huge blaze which ripped through Saddleworth Moor and the Pennines in 2018. It started on a grouse moor and was, they say, an accident waiting to happen.
At 108,726 acres, The North York Moors National Park is the largest expanse of grouse moor in England. It will not be protected by the ban.
The Rosedale and Westerdale Estate, where our photos were taken, is one of the biggest in the park. It is owned by Carphone Warehouse co-founder David Ross, a Tory donor.
Richard Gray, 53, a villager in nearby Glaisdale, told me the fire season has been especially severe in recent years. He said:
“We are fed up of the constant thick smoke.
In October 2017, local estates burnt for 17 consecutive days.
“They say grouse shooting brings money into the local economy, but it brings nothing other than smoke and destruction of wildlife.”
Although the heather is burnt for the red grouse, conservationists say it damages mosses, grasses and plants vital for other birds. And the burning damages the soil so rain rushes off the hills, muddying waterways.
But Amanda Anderson, director of the Moorland Association, said: “Moorland managers have been blocking thousands of miles of old industrial and agricultural drains on moors which helps retain water.”
She said controlled heather burning actually helps reduce wildfires by creating firebreaks and reducing fuel load and it favours many ground-nesting birds in decline elsewhere. She added: “There is no case to say burning should be banned beyond protected areas.”
Rob Stoneman, The Wildlife Trust’s director of landscape recovery, disagrees. He said: “It is crucial the peat stays wet to keep the carbon in the ground... It just doesn’t make sense to burn peatlands.”
Crispin Truman, chief executive of countryside charity CPRE, added: “In the year we host climate talks at COP26 in Glasgow, the world will see us red-faced as we burn our rainforest, while urging them to protect theirs.”