Ban the burn

The Trust signs letter from Wildlife & Countryside Link members to Environment Minister calling for proper protection of peatlands.

At the end of January 2021, the UK Government announced plans to legislate to prevent the burning of heather and other vegetation on protected blanket bog habitats.

While this sounded promising, the subsequently proposed ban had a very narrow application. It would only cover burning on ‘specified vegetation’; on areas of deep peat (over 40cm depth); and on Sites of Special Scientific Interest that are also Special Areas of Conservation or a Special Protection Areas. Even if the land area meets all those criteria, there are exemptions: a ban would not automatically apply on rocky or steep terrain, and a licence could still be applied for that would allow burning.

The Trust signed a letter from Wildlife and Countryside LINK members to the Environment Minister which urged the proper protection of peatlands. It pointed out that the narrow set of circumstances in which the ban would apply means “around 70 per cent of upland peat in England is excluded from the ban from the word go” and, taking the exemptions into account, “at worst, could render the ban almost completely ineffective.”

We will continue to lend our voice to calls for a meaningful ban on burning peat in the UK’s uplands, recognising exemptions are needed for public safety and restoration in exceptional and clearly defined circumstances. 

• Read the letter calling for an end to burning on peatlands.

Photograph of muirburn by Kevin Lelland