“You’ve heard of ‘tree-huggers’ protecting woodlands, We ‘bog-trotters’ love the wetlands.”
The phrases of agile ecologist Andrew McBride, from the Land and Habitats consultancy, as he strides throughout a marsh in Aberdeenshire.
With spectacular eyebrows and a gnarled wood employees, notched alongside the shaft as a depth gauge, he appears to be like each inch the swampland Gandalf. But he insists there is not any magic to restoring bogs: simply add water.
“The point of the dam we are standing on is to hold more water here so the sphagnum moss can actually grow.
“Sphagnum is likely one of the major issues that makes peat.”
But there’s something virtually magical about sphagnum moss. It appears to be like like a vivid inexperienced mass of feathery ferns.
It thrives with out soil, has outstanding antiseptic properties, holds prodigious quantities of water and accumulates virtually infinitely to make peat.
Peat covers about 12% of the UK and greater than 20% of Scotland.
It’s within the fields of the Fens, the moors of the Pennines and blanket bogs of the Highlands.
In locations it may be no less than 5 metres deep and throughout the nation holds extra carbon than the woodlands of the UK, France and Germany mixed.
But as soon as it is drained and dried that carbon lock is damaged and the greenhouse fuel escapes.
Degrading peat is estimated to be liable for about 5% of UK carbon emissions.
One of the contributors to that degradation is whisky. It is vital to the method of creating many manufacturers typically infused with the treasured “peaty reek”.
The Scottish authorities has introduced a want to “phase out the use of peat for the sake of the environment” and has not dominated out together with whisky in that ban.
The multi-national drinks firm Beam Suntory gave Sky News a tour of their Ardmore Distillery on the sting of Speyside.
It’s a maze of big vats, barrels and steampunk engineering accompanied by a magical thriller tour of aromas: malt, smoke, historical wooden and contemporary fermentation.
Alistair Longwell, their head of atmosphere and distilling, factors out that whisky is liable for lower than 1% of the peat extracted within the UK, however what they do use is important.
“For our brands and many others, peat is fundamentally important.
“It creates that distinctive character and flavour that our shoppers love.
“A ban (on its use) would have a unique and detrimental impact on what is our standard bearing export – so important not just to Scotland but the UK as a whole.”
His firm helps to fund the restoration of peat bogs near the distillery underneath the watchful and appreciative eye of Andrew McBride.
“Government alone can’t do this so it’s very important that companies that use peat, and others that are using the natural environment, give something back.”
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But he additionally believes that wetlands have suffered from a picture drawback – seen as perilous, untrustworthy and linked with decay.
“Drain the Swamp” has even develop into a political chant.
“Bogs have been completely unloved for centuries, and they’ve been seen as sort of negative places,” he mentioned.
“But when you actually start to understand them, you get onto them.
“You see the range, the totally different species.
“I think we’ve probably turned a corner now because people are paying much more attention to peatlands.”
The Scottish authorities actually is.
Its proposals embody phasing out the usage of peat in gardening.
This is already scheduled to occur in England in 2024.
In actuality, whisky’s iconic standing and significance to the Scottish economic system will most likely reserve it from the ban.
Expect peat to fade from the potting shed effectively earlier than the drinks cupboard.
Source: information.sky.com”