Ireland’s upland blanket bogs are of great ecological importance – Ireland possesses 8% of the world’s blanket bogs. These bogs have been severely degraded by land use practices, erosion, uncontrolled burning, and more recently recreation pressures. The project aims to restore the area’s peatlands through, rewetting, revegetation and erosion control. With our volunteers being ever keen, restoration work has expanded to tree planting during the winter months when usual bog restoration work can’t be done.

There is massive, and important, intersection between this initiative and outdoor recreation such as mountaineering and climbing. Not only are the Wicklow Mountains an integral setting for Irish hillwalkers and climbers, the restoration work is also reliant on people who hold knowledge of how to work and move in these environments. The work takes place along ridgelines, cols, and high plateaus – areas that the general public would not regularly access, but the Mountaineering Ireland members would. It is reliant on the federation’s volunteers as they hold an intimate knowledge of the upland environment and can navigate Wicklow’s hills far more easily than those who don’t regularly engage in mountain sports. This allows the restoration work to be done efficiently, and for more valuable knowledge sharing to occur. The connection that Mountaineering Ireland volunteers have with the mountains makes them acutely aware of the changes taking place, with many witnessing years of environmental change in the uplands, thus making them strong stewards to the land.

First implemented in March 2022 and is still ongoing, the Peatland Restoration Project couldn’t have been done without Mountaineering Ireland volunteers, the Blanket Bog Buddies. In 2024 alone, Mountaineering Ireland volunteers contributed well over 1,000 hours to the project, participating in 40 volunteer days and helping to construct over 1,000 sediment traps, timber dams, and other erosion control measures.

The project fosters increased environmental literacy among the mountaineering community. It is a uniquely powerful learning experience, with a combination of conservation efforts and physical activity in an important ecological setting. This initiative is a shining example of how UIAA bodies and their associated communities can be major players in environmental stewardship, restoration and the integration of ecological awareness in our everyday life.

These unique upland habitats are important both as natural carbon sinks, and as a harbour for biodiversity. They also make up a significant portion of the landscape that many hillwalkers and climbers perform their activities in.

One of the ways Blanket Bog Buddies are restoring these landscapes is through re-wetting the bogs, which is important in preventing further degradation, and restoring the bog. This work hits on a number of different important environmental focuses – promoting habitat restoration, climate mitigation, protecting water quality and increasing biodiversity, amongst other benefits. It promotes carbon sequestration and helps the bog to support its natural flora and fauna.

This project aims to create a future where Ireland’s upland peatlands are appropriately valued, protected and actively restored.