The impact of tracks on peatland hydrological functioning

Globally there is little science literature about impacts of tracks/roads of different designs on peatlands and other wetlands, landscapes with wet, compressible soil. Yet access is increasingly being required for a range of purposes including windfarms, oil sand development, forestry access, wildfire safety, conservation access and game management.
Peatlands cover ~15% of the British Isles. Hence, peatland tracks are a key priority for Natural England, the CASE partner. They are also a priority for upland landowners who seek permission to lay tracks for moorland access. Natural England have consented for many estates to install temporary mesh tracks for peatland access. However, they have not fully considered their relative influence compared to gravel tracks or other types of peatland road in terms of hydrological pathways and functioning (including flood risk); there is concern about flow accumulation & acceleration downslope and flow diversion which may lead to some peatland locations becoming drier. Furthermore, as legal consents from Natural England have so far been temporary, track removal implications need to be understood; damage upon removal (as vegetation that has grown through the mesh is severely disturbed) could be large.
A recent PhD project at the University of Leeds studied the impacts of mesh tracks on water tables and peat compression, mainly using an experimental track at Moor House National Nature Reserve (McKendrick-Smith, 2017). However, little is known about wider impacts (e.g. runoff accumulation) of both hard tracks and plastic mesh tracks on peatlands (Natural England, 2014) or long-term effects of mesh track use. Little is also known about whether removal of plastic tracks causes substantial damage.
This project will investigate i) how roads and tracks of different designs influence the hydrology and flood risk from upland peatlands; ii) understand the impacts of removing such roads and tracks; iii) examine how to minimize damage and maximize benefits.