€10 million in EU funds for big midlands peat bog project
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news@leinsterexpress.ie
Micheal D Higgins on a visit to Abbeyleix Bog which was saved and rehabilitated by a community project in Laois );
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The European Commission is to fund €10million towards a project which it is claimed will have a big peatlands rehabilitation element.
Bord na Móna, which is coordinating the project, said the Peatlands and People project is a major national initiative that has won funding support from the European Commission which will contribute to the long term implementation of Ireland’s Climate Action Plan. The company says it will engage people in Ireland and across the European Union with the benefits of peatlands restoration, in particular, to realise the power of peatlands in climate action.
Irish peatlands restoration project secures €10m in EU funding
The Peatlands and People project aims to promote peatlands restoration as a positive step for climate action.
The European Commission has granted funding for an Irish initiative highlighting the importance of peatlands to the planet’s future. Through the EU Life programme, €10m has been awarded to the Peatlands and People project led Bord na Móna, which aims to engage with people in Ireland and across the EU about the benefits of peatlands restoration and how it can effect positive climate action.
Earlier this year, Bord na Móna confirmed it had formally ended all peat harvesting on its lands as part of its ‘brown to green’ strategy. It also recently launched a Peatlands Restoration plan, prioritising the conversion of peatlands from fossil fuel sources to large-scale carbon capture sites.
Major funding initiative announced for climate action in the Midlands
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A major funding initiative for climate action in the Midlands has been announced.
Offaly minister Pippa Hackett has welcomed the €10million funding injection from the EU for a project which will work with peatlands and communities in the Midlands to deliver capacity and support related to a low-carbon economy.
Speaking about the project, ‘Peatlands and People’, which will highlight the power of peatlands to effect significant climate action wins, Minister Hackett said: This wonderful initiative will deliver to the Midlands a Peatlands Centre of Excellence, Just Transition Accelerator, and a new Discovery Attraction.