Scotland’s peat bogs are a World Heritage Site

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The caretakers of Scotland’s peat bogs have hailed it as a “momentous moment” after they were named a world wonder by the United Nations. The vast wetland in the north of the country has been designated a protected area, the first peat bog in the world to be recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Recognised as the largest peat bog in the world, it covers around 1,500 square miles of land in Caithness and Sutherland. Peat bogs are defined as dense wetlands filled with partially decayed vegetation and are inhabited by wildlife such as short-eared owls, golden eagles and red-throated loons.

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The area, known as “Flowing Country,” is also considered significant because it stores an estimated 400 million tons of carbon, The Daily Telegraph reported. It is on the World Heritage list alongside other famous sites such as the Grand Canyon, the Galapagos Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. Graham Neville of environmental group NatureScot said the UN award was “a significant moment for the people of Scotland and their beloved landscape.”

He called it a “fantastic recognition” of the stewardship of farmers and tenants who have maintained this “incredible ecosystem as a natural legacy for future generations”. Neville added: “World Heritage status will provide greater understanding of Flowing Country and increase the global profile of Scotland’s peatlands as biodiversity habitats and important carbon sinks.”

Mike Robinson of the UK National Commission for UNESCO said the new status recognised the “critical defence” that peat bogs provide against the “impacts of climate change”. Other areas in the UK that have been added to the UNESCO natural heritage list include the St Kilda Islands in Scotland, the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland and the Dorset and East Devon coastline in south-west England.

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