MORE than £1m has been given to the North Pennines National Landscape to restore peatlands in upper Teesdale, Weardale and Cumbria.
The cash has come from German environmental group, Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union (NABU) and will be used to support work on more than 900 hectares of degraded peatland at five key sites.
The national landscape authority says restoring the area, equivalent to about 1,200 football pitches, will improve habitat quality and restore water levels of the blanket bog.
All the land is in private ownership, and the project is being carried out in collaboration with landowners and land managers.
Paul Leadbitter, peatland programme manager for the national landscape, said: “We’re pleased to be working with NABU delivering this project that meets their desire to address climate and biodiversity crises.
“This is a significant and very welcome investment and is the first funding we have had from a non-UK partner since our EU LIFE programme began in 2017. The North Pennines National Landscape team leads the way in attracting green finance for large-scale environmental projects.”
Frank Woesthoff, who leads NABU’s climate fund, said: “Nature knows no borders and at NABU we work tirelessly to protect species, habitats, and climate, at home and abroad. We are committed to projects around the globe, empowering strong local partners to take action for nature conservation, and against the climate and biodiversity crises.
“Peatlands are a priority for NABU and we are very pleased to be putting this funding in place to directly improve these valuable habitats in order to bring them back to their natural state.”
