Restored or reinvented?Assessing the success of peatland restoration pilot projects in the Northumberland National Parks using environmental DNA(eDNA)

Peatlands are a powerful tool for carbon capture as a mitigation against global emissions, combatting climate change and delivering on the UN Sustainable Development Goals. However, in England 87% of the 1.42m hectares of peatlands are degraded from anthropogenic activity, such as intensive farming. DEFRA's Peat Action Plan presented the first national policy initiative for ecosystem restoration to mitigate against further peatland degradation in which Natural England committed £50m to support restoration across the England, including the Northumberland National Park (NNP). Following globally recognised practices, restoration of degraded peatlands in the NNP are currently under the direction of Wildlife Trust and are focussed on rewetting 1500 ha. Diagnostic features of a 'restored' peatland include net carbon sink, carbon store, biodiversity, water quality, cultural support and sustainable use but has failed to establish a biogeochemical signature for distinguishing a 'restored' peatland in a pristine state from a 'reinvented' peatland (i.e., a rewetted degraded surface).
In global conservation, environmental DNA (eDNA) has demonstrated success as a tool for biodiversity monitoring. In peatland restoration, the value of microbial community assessment has been identified but has yet to be investigated at active peatland restoration sites. This project aims to synthesise approaches in eDNA and microbial community assessment to address the challenge of developing a baseline signature for a restored peatland. Fieldwork will be conducted at degraded and restored peatland sites across Whitelee Moor (Northumberland Wildlife Trust site) and comparative analysis of the microbial communities using next-generation sequencing (NGS) eDNA analysis and conventional metabolic analyses using EcoPlates will be carried out. These baseline datasets will contribute to Natural England's national policy around restoration best practice.