How can we restore peatlands while also creating long-term carbon storage? At the Power to the Peatlands conference, Restore Carbon presented its vision for an integrated approach that brings together rewetting, active management, peatland restoration and durable carbon removal.
During the conference, Paul Smits presented how Restore Carbon is developing a circular approach to peatland restoration, in which biomass generated through nature management can become a valuable resource for creating new peat and storing carbon.
From rewetting to restoration
Rewetting is an important first step in restoring degraded peatlands. By raising water levels and bringing peatlands back to wetter conditions, further peat degradation and associated CO₂ emissions can be reduced.
But rewetting alone is not always enough. Active management and mowing are often needed to maintain the desired vegetation and biodiversity. This generates significant amounts of plant material every year.
Rather than treating this biomass as waste, Restore Carbon sees it as a valuable resource for further peatland restoration.
Returning biomass to the peat
Restore Carbon’s technology enables mowing biomass and other plant-based residues to be placed deep below the water table, in oxygen-poor conditions where the organic material can be preserved over the long term and contribute to the formation of new peat.
This creates a circular cycle:
Mowing → biomass → underground storage → new peat formation → long-term carbon storage
By connecting these processes, peatland management can deliver multiple benefits at the same time: restoring natural water conditions, supporting biodiversity, making better use of local biomass and removing CO₂ from the atmosphere through long-term carbon storage.
Carbon removal as part of peatland restoration
Restore Carbon believes that carbon removal can be more than a stand-alone climate solution. It can become an integral part of a broader peatland restoration strategy, where nature management, biodiversity, circular biomass use and climate action reinforce each other.
The presentation also touched on the growing role of peatlands in European climate policy and the development of the Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF).
Power to the Peatlands brought together researchers, policymakers, nature organisations and other stakeholders working on the future of peatlands. For Restore Carbon, it was a valuable opportunity to share our approach, exchange knowledge and explore new possibilities for collaboration.
Rewet. Manage. Restore. Remove. Store.