Our S1/2 Wider achievement Group 1 got the opportunity today to learn about Peat Restoration from the Shetland Amenity Trust Peatland ACTION project Officers Sue and Ash and Logan – Natural Heritage Officer.

We started by picking up Sphagnum Moss from next to the roadside and then we dropped the sphagnum moss in the sides of pools of water throughout the heathery hill nearby. We saw where dams had been constructed before to aid the moisture retention of the peat which had been left exposed.

Over the last few months there has been diggers converting the dried out peat hags into areas with less peat exposed. Therefore us being there to plant sphagnum moss so it can re-establish will improve the peat restoration process.

Ash, Sue and Logan spoke about the carbon emitted from exposed peat, the impact we can have on the planet and the demand for people to choose to work in the Peat Restoration industry which is still quite new for shetland (10 years). Group 1 will take part in dam building next week, with groups 2 and 3 getting the same opportunity later on this term.

Thanks to Ash, Sue and Logan for a very educational afternoon spend in the outdoors. To find out more about their work go to Peatland ACTION Project