Peatland restoration; RSPB Orkney, Black Moss, April 2024

Descriptions

The identified restoration area at Black Moss of Evrigert is located within the southern part of the Birsay Moors RSPB Reserve which spans just over 1300ha of predominantly bog, mire and heathland habitats. The site is also part of West Mainland SSSI and Orkney Mainland Moors SPA which recognise Birsay Moors’ importance for breeding Hen Harrier, Red-Throated Diver and Short Eared Owl as well as bog plant communities. The identified restoration site has been subject to extensive peat cutting historically. Whilst some of these peat banks are re-vegetating, there are significant areas of actively eroding peat faces and hags, as well as erosion gullies and areas of micro-erosion across the site. This is leading to further erosion of peat and drying out of the surrounding vegetation. Restoring these features will improve the resilience and overall health/condition of the habitat making it better able to support a range of wildlife and be able to cope with changing weather patterns linked to climate change. The site boundary for the restoration area is approximately 146 ha in size, with the footprint of restoration work expected to be approximately 131 ha. It is expected that the Contractor will work to restore all erosion features in this area using a combination of machine work and hand labour. The work will be procured on a treatment basis which includes machine days, hand labour days and the supply of materials. The site has been assessed and requires a combination of work using a range of machinery of appropriate size on extra wide low ground pressure tracks for peat-based techniques and manual construction by hand of plastic pile, wooden and coir log dams. A range of techniques will be employed to treat the features in this area, these are detailed below within the tender specification. It is anticipated that machine work will be the preference, although there are some small, sensitive areas that may require hand work for the instillation of dams. Required materials will be moved into the area with a suitable ATV.