Irish Boglands & Climate Science — 5th & 6th Class

Bogs and the climate crisis

1. 1 Bogs as carbon stores Irish bogs have been storing carbon for 10,000 years — absorbing CO₂ from the atmosphere and locking it into peat. An intact raised bog stores 10 times more carbon per hectare than a tropical rainforest.
2. 2 Peat extraction and CO₂ release When peat is cut and burned as fuel, thousands of years of stored carbon is released as CO₂ in minutes. Drained bogs also release carbon even without burning.
3. 3 Bord na Móna The semi-state company that harvested peat from the Irish midlands for fuel. Now pivoting to wind energy, rehabilitating worked-out bogs, and developing solar energy on former peatland.
4. 4 Bog restoration Blocking the drainage channels (drains) in a degraded bog allows it to rewet. A rewetted bog can become a carbon sink again within years. Ireland has committed to restoring 33,000 hectares of degraded bogland.
5. 5 Climate targets Ireland must reduce greenhouse gas emissions 51% by 2030 (Climate Action Plan). Bogland restoration is one of the most cost-effective ways to reduce emissions from the land sector.
6. 6 Community impact Many midland communities have been dependent on peat harvesting for generations. The transition to a post-peat economy requires new jobs in renewables, ecological restoration, and eco-tourism.