Peatland ACTION case study: What's the connection between peatland restoration and future-proofing your farm business?

Peatland ACTION case study: What's the connection between peatland restoration and future-proofing your farm business?

The answer lies in a more accessible peatland and a reduction in black loss

About Armadale Farm

Armadale Farm is a 2,290ha traditional hill farm in Sutherland. It’s had a continuous flock of sheep on it since 1791, but now has a mix of sheep, cattle and a holiday cottage business. It also had a lot of damaged peatland, including up to 210km of hill drains. Since 2024, using a combination of Peatland ACTION funding, and support from the Flow Country Green Finance Initiative, farmer Joyce Campbell has so far carried out peatland restoration on over 600ha of her land. A further 278ha of restoration is planned for 2025-26. This is in addition to 250ha of restoration work funded through an SSE Renewables compensatory restoration scheme. This means that she has restored nearly half of her peatland so far - an impressive achievement. The work has reduced her black loss and, she feels, futureproofed her business. 
 

Peatland restoration at Armadale Farm

The most recent peatland restoration at Armadale went ahead thanks to the Flow Country Green Finance Initiative. The Initiative aims to scale peatland restoration in Caithness and Sutherland, through the blending of public (Peatland ACTION) and private (Peatland Code/private investment) finance. The organisation secured FIRNS (Facility for Investment Ready Scotland) funding, which involved developing and testing a model to deliver their aims at three pilot sites – a hill farm, an estate, and a common grazing. Armadale is the first of these. It hopes the work will provide a model to help increase peatland restoration with the associated local economic, employment, research and education opportunities, skills development and training that this brings

Work began on the first phase of the two-phase project in August 2024, with just over 605ha of peatland restoration carried out over 12 weeks of work. A further 278ha was scheduled for 2025-26. 

The restoration work proved relatively simple, meaning that the cost per hectare provided great value for money. The key techniques used were installing peat dams, zippering, reprofiling drains and gullies, creating surface bunds, and reprofiling large hags.

The second phase of work began in August 2025. 

Armadale Farm peatland restoration - Challenges

With over 40 archaeological features identified either within or near to the restoration area it was important to ensure the work didn’t cause damage. After consulting Historic Environment Scotland and the Highland Council’s Archaeology department, a raft of measures were put in place to protect the archaeology of the site. This included buffer zones around features, and a pre-commencement meeting on site with contractors to identify the features on the ground. A toolbox talk was also carried out for contractors to communicate the protocol for discovering previously unknown features during the works. And low-pressure machinery (<3 PSI where possible) was used to mitigate accidental damage to any unknown buried features. 

Deer impacts on the majority of the restoration area are low. Since 2021 Armadale Farm has significantly increased the cull levels to reduce deer impacts within the holding. As a result the deer were not seen as a threat to the success of the restoration.

Even though the current sheep impacts on the restoration area are low, Armadale Farm is aiming to significantly reduce the grazing levels on the two fields covering the restoration area to a grazing density of 0.017 LU/ha and 0.042 LU/ha. 

Golden eagles and black throated divers are known to breed on and around the farm, which meant that work had to be timed to avoid disturbing the birds during the breeding season. For this reason work didn’t start until after the middle of August, while bird breeding surveys were carried out at lochs with potential diver nests if work was due to go ahead before 15 September. If the birds were found to be breeding a buffer zone would be put in place.

 Armadale Farm peatland restoration - Successful outcomes

The Flow Country Green Finance Initiative is delighted with the outcomes of the work, which used a local contractor for all the groundworks. Providing local work for local people meant that they were buying fuel and food locally, while their children attend the local schools and nurseries—all contributing to the local economy and helping to maintain thriving communities.
The contractor, Gary Mackay of John Mackay Ltd said that peatland restoration work had benefitted his business greatly, because it provided work in the winter months when less forestry and estate work was available.

Joyce Campbell explained that it had benefitted her business in a number of ways. It reduced her black loss significantly even in the first year, with fewer sheep drowning after getting stuck in drains. The restoration work also serves to future-proof the business, in case a carbon tax, or penalties for carbon emitted from modified drains, are introduced. But, she said, ultimately she had done the work because for her it was the right thing to do.

For further information, or to get involved with Peatland ACTION

Peatland ACTION case studies: We demonstrate links between peat condition and: fisheries; grouse; carbon storage; wildlife; landscapes; human history; and so much more. 

If you would like to contribute to the on-going work of Peatland ACTION please contact [email protected].

For further information: www.nature.scot/peatlandaction