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2nd
ANNOUNCEMENT |
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Updates on the mid-congress tours: 1. Ecology and restoration of lowland raised bogs This trip will visit two lowland raised bogs (Clara and Raheenmore, both of which are Special Areas of Conservation [S.A.C.])that were central to the Irish-Dutch Raised Bog Eco-Hydrological Study. Clara Bog is the largest remaining relatively intact raised bog in Ireland and along with Raheenmore Bog is recognised as being of high ecological importance. Extensive eco-hydrological studies have been carried out at both sites, and this led to the development and implementation of restoration measures to offset effects from drainage and turf-cutting. The tour will incorporate discussions on the success of restoration work carried out to date and also further plans to restore the minerotrophic vegetation of the Lough Roe soak system within Clara Bog East. 2. Peat in energy This tour will provide an overview of Bord na Móna’s peat energy business from peat harvesting to after-uses of commercially exhausted peat energy bogs. The trip will begin with a visit to a typical Bord na Móna peat production operation at the Derrygreenagh Works where milled peat is harvested for supply to the nearby Edenderry peat-fired power plant. A tour of the Edenderry station will be provided. Following from this the group will travel to the Boora Works to examine some of the after-uses of cutaway bogs. The tour will conclude with a visit to the monastic site at Clonmacnoise. 3. Peat in horticulture 4. After-use of industrial cutaway peatlands A range of after-uses have been established on the Bord na Móna industrial cutaway bogs. A visit to the Lough Boora Parklands will provide a comprehensive overview of both commercial and non-commercial after-use projects. Commercial uses include coniferous forestry and agricultural grassland. Smaller-scale options include angling lakes, model airplane clubs and shooting ranges. The Lough Boora Parklands also includes extensive areas that have naturally re-colonised and have developed into a mosaic of wetland and dryland plant communities: these areas are recognised as being of high conservation value. A visit to the award-winning Sculpture in the Parklands will be included. 5. Restoration and rehabilitation of damaged peatlands Extensive areas of peatlands in Ireland were afforested in the 1980s for commercial conifer timber. The success of these plantations was largely poor and in recent years a number of projects have been initiated to examine the potential to restore these areas to peat-forming systems. The main methods employed are felling and removal of trees, followed by drain-blocking to promote rewetting of the degraded peatland. This tour will incorporate visits to bogs in the midlands where measures have been employed to restore peatlands under E.U. LIFE funding. 6. Forestry on peatlands This tour will focus on the attempts to establish commercially viable conifer and hardwood plantations on peatlands in Ireland. The first part of this tour will focus on afforestation trials and demonstration areas on industrial cutaway peatlands. This work was carried out under the BOGFOR project through a combined working team of members of Coillte (the state forestry company), Bord na Móna and University College Dublin. The second part of the tour will consider the afforestation of upland blanket peatlands in the Slieve Bloom mountains. Various age plantations will form the basis for discussion. An E.U. LIFE-funded restoration project on former afforested blanket peatland will also be included. 7. Peatland archaeology, art and eco-tourism
8. Slieve Bloom mountains Slieve Bloom is a geological inlier at the heart of Ireland that has managed to maintain an atmosphere of tranquillity that has been lost everywhere else. This excursion will provide an introduction to many aspects of the natural and cultural heritage of this ‘island’ mountain, with particular emphasis on the blanket bog of the summit plateau, but looking also at how it has been utilised over the centuries and with sidelong glances at its geology, ecology and archaeology along the way. Be prepared for plenty of walking! 9. Climate change and peatlands This tour will visit both upland blanket bog and lowland raised bog sites, and will incorporate discussions of findings from carbon balance studies carried out on a range of peatland types: intact, afforested and restored blanket bogs; naturally colonised industrial cutaway with open water, fen, grassland and birch woodland communities; coniferous forestry on industrial cutaways; and lowland raised bog. An overview of renewable energy options, including energy crops and the co-firing of peat power plants, will also form part of the programme. 10. Peatland formation and education This tour considers stages in the formation of an oceanic raised bog: lake, alkaline fen and acid raised bog. There will be visits to Pollardstown Fen and Lodge Bog in the Bog of Allen region of Co. Kildare to see typical habitats and flora and fauna. The trip will include a demonstration of the conservation management and monitoring techniques used at each site. It will also focus on the educational use of raised bogs with a visit to the Bog of Allen Nature Centre run by the Irish Peatland Conservation Council. This centre houses: a peatland museum; a greenhouse of insect eating plants from around the world; peatland exhibitions; created peatland habitats and peat-free wildlife conservation gardens. General Note Some of the excursions will involve considerable walking times. The Final Programme will contain the names and contact details of tour co-ordinators and participants are asked to contact their tour co-ordinator to provide detail on the level of walking and/or the requirement for outdoor walking equipment. Field trip programmes may be subject to alterations. The Organising Committee reserves the right to determine the number of participants on each trip. Persons wishing for additional information on individual trips are invited to contact catherine.farrell@bnm.ie. Field Trips are booked on a first come first served basis.
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Abbey Conference & Corporate, City Gate, 22 Bridge Street Lower, Dublin 8, Ireland Phone +353 1 6799144 Fax +353 1 6486197 E-mail: ipc2008@abbey.ie |
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