Farming in the Uplands - ARCHIVE: Defra

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28 Farming in the Uplands carbon storage through peat restoration, afforestation and agricultural practices. 148 The CRC emphasised the importance of peat in mitigating carbon loss and suggested that restoration of peat land for carbon storage could be the basis of a carbon market in the uplands. 149 In evidence the CRC remained enthusiastic about the potential financial benefits for hill farmers from a carbon market that rewarded restoration of peatland but provided little information on how such a system would operate. 150 67. Our evidence indicated an appetite for developing a carbon market. 151 The Aberdeen Centre for Environmental Sustainability advocated removing policy barriers to enable a functioning carbon market to drive peatland restoration. They propose introducing a UK Peatland Carbon Code to the Greenhouse Gas Accounting Guidelines to take advantage of corporate social responsibility activity; creating a registry for peatland restoration projects to access voluntary carbon markets; or Defra integrating peatland restoration into existing agri-environmental schemes. 152 68. The NFU welcomed the CRC’s recommendation but noted that a carbon market was likely to be volatile and that it would take some time before it would provide a “meaningful income source for farmers”. 153 The CLA pointed out that there was a regulatory barrier to expanding the voluntary carbon offset market to include peatland restoration. The CLA explained that companies wishing to earn tradable offset credits (credits that could count towards compliance requirements) could not do so by investing in UK projects as such credits could only be earned from investment in projects in developing countries. 154 The CLA recommended that: ... if companies could finance carbon reduction projects in the UK without the need to take ownership of a tradable carbon credit they would be encouraged to invest in peatland restoration projects, if they were confident that they will deliver quantifiable greenhouse gas benefits. Such an approach would need to make clear that companies will not earn tradable carbon credits from their investment. 155 Professor Buckwell, director of policy at the CLA, thought it would take a decade or longer to establish a working carbon market that would benefit the uplands. 156 He added that it would require both technical advances and the political will to provide incentives for companies to purchase carbon storage. 157 EMBARGOED ADVANCE COPY: Not to be published in full, or part, in any form before 00.01am GMT Wednesday 16 February 2011 69. Under the Climate Change Act 2008 the Government set legally binding ceilings on UK carbon emissions based on the UK’s share of the EU’s overall target to reduce 148 Q 118 149 High ground, high potential, p 57 150 Q 47 151 Evs w2, w3 152 Ev w25 153 Ev 64, Q 122 154 Ev 59 155 Ev 59 156 Q 119 157 Q 119
EMBARGOED ADVANCE COPY: Not to be published in full, or part, in any form before 00.01am GMT Wednesday 16 February 2011 Farming in the Uplands 29 greenhouse gas emissions. The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan, published in July 2009, sets out carbon budgets for each sector of the UK economy. Each Government department is responsible for delivery of the carbon reduction emissions to meet its sectors’ carbon budget. Agriculture is therefore within Defra’s carbon budget. The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan puts an emphasis on farmers adopting “more climate friendly” processes, such as improving the effectiveness of fertiliser application. 158 70. The CRC recommended that the Government establish a functioning carbon market, but appeared to have little to add apart from their enthusiasm. A carbon market is unlikely to be established for some time and therefore Defra should concentrate on the short-term benefits to the uplands first. We do not anticipate carbon markets making a significant contribution to the uplands economy for some time. A functioning carbon market operating in the uplands is an important long term goal. We recommend the Department for Energy and Climate Change work with Defra to identify a mechanism by which the uplands could participate in a carbon market, what regulatory barriers need to removed and what the likely return to farmers would be from participating in the market. This work should consider how peatland restoration could be incorporated into a carbon market. 71. Restoration of peat can contribute to increasing carbon storage as well as having wider environmental benefits. We recommend that Defra explore how peat restoration projects could contribute to Defra’s carbon budget obligations. Water Markets 72. In High ground, high potential the CRC recommended that Defra and its agencies should use good practice (such as SCaMP and catchment sensitive farming) to develop models for public-private investment that secures multiple objectives in upland catchments, maintains water quality, reduces flood risk and potentially provides income for hill farmers and land managers. 159 The CRC went on to explain that the uplands not only provide a substantial proportion of the UK’s clean drinking water, but can also have “an important role in mitigating the flood risk downstream.” 160 Despite the complexity of upland hydrology, 161 Professor Buckwell described the uplands as being able to provide public water storage, filtration and discolouration removal services. 162 He said that there were examples of upland land managers being paid for these services. 163 The Minister also told us that currently “some water authorities are already working with farmers in their catchment areas to develop the 158 The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan: National strategy for climate and energy, Department for Energy and Climate Change, 15 July 2009 159 High ground, high potential, p 15 160 High ground, high potential, p 56 161 Ev w30 162 Q 118 163 Q 118
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