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Natural England - Taking the high ground: Natural England highlights climate change challenge for English uplands

Taking the high ground: Natural England highlights climate change challenge for English uplands

14 November 2008

Understanding the impacts of climate change is critical to the future management of the uplands says Natural England today (Friday 14 November) as it hosts a major national conference looking at the environmental future of the English uplands.

The conference, which includes a keynote speech by Environment Secretary, Hilary Benn, highlights the invaluable environmental services provided by the uplands and the significant impacts climate change will have on their landscapes and natural environment.

Speaking at the conference today, Dr Helen Phillips, Chief Executive of Natural England, said: “The uplands are inspirational places that thousands of people enjoy, and that provide vital environmental services such as clean water supplies, flood management and carbon storage. They also provide a safe haven for some of England’s most threatened wildlife.”

At the conference, the Environment Secretary launched a new Natural England report* highlighting how land managers – from hill farmers through to utility companies - have a vital role to play in maintaining England’s peatlands as carbon stores and in securing environmental services that contribute to improved water quality and flood alleviation.

Hilary Benn, Secretary of State for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, said: “I am pleased today to launch Natural England’s report on the role of land and marine managers as carbon managers. It is a particularly important contribution to the debate over how we manage our land, and in particular our uplands, which are so important in storing carbon. It sets out both what land managers can do to help maintain their carbon stores and the gaps that remain in our understanding of the science.”

Helen Phillips continued: “We must manage the uplands with climate change in mind and understand how the environmental services they provide are likely to adapt. As England’s most important carbon store, peatlands play a particularly crucial role and we must do all we can to ensure that they are properly looked after and maintained. Land managers are the linchpins of this work.”

Natural England’s green farming schemes already support land managers in protecting these areas through re-wetting and blocking drainage channels. Carbon trading could also provide a potential new business opportunity for land managers across the uplands and we are scoping how this could work in practice with the farming industry.

Highlights for the reports published today show that:

  • Peatlands are England’s most important carbon store but are also losing carbon due to degradation contributing significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. There are about 680,000 ha of deep peatland soils in England, of which half is in the uplands.
  • England’s peat soils store around 300 million tonnes of carbon. Natural England estimates that degraded peatlands are losing carbon about 5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year which is about 1% of total UK emissions. As a comparison, domestic aviation as a proportion of total UK emissions was 0.43% in 2005.
  • Improving the condition of all existing upland habitats and water resources is a priority, particularly high carbon ones like blanket bog. Peatland restoration will reduce carbon losses, although we need to better understand post-restoration methane emissions which could reduce the carbon savings.

Helen Phillips concluded: “The challenges of climate change across the uplands are significant and we need to take a long term view to ensure we can continue to make the most of the services that a high quality, well-managed upland environment can provide.”

-Ends-

Notes to editors:

* Carbon Management by Land and Marine Managers is available online.

Natural England’s climate change conference: A mountain to climb? Tackling climate change in the uplands - is being held at The Met, Leeds on 14 November 2008

Roger Harrabin, the BBC’s Environment Analyst will chair the conference. Speakers include: Environment Secretary, Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP; Dr Helen Phillips, Chief Executive of Natural England; Roger Street of UKCIP; Dr Fred Worrell of Durham University.

Dr Tom Tew, Natural England Chief Scientist will present details of Upland ecosystem services and will chair a panel discussion with: Jonathan Blackie, Government Office North-East; Andy Wilson, North York Moors National Park; Dr Mark Avery, RSPB; David Andrews, Yorkshire Tourist Board; and Martin Gillibrand, Moorland Association.

Natural England works for people, places and nature to conserve and enhance biodiversity, landscapes and wildlife in rural, urban, coastal and marine areas. We conserve and enhance the natural environment for its intrinsic value, the wellbeing and enjoyment of people, and the economic prosperity it brings.

For further information contact: The National Press Office on 0845 603 9953, press@naturalengland.org.uk, out of hours 07970 098005. For further information about Natural England please visit: www.naturalengland.org.uk

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