Migneint Moor

Category: Natural feature

Ordnance survey link
http://www.field-studies-council.org/media/25080/Afon%20Conwy%20map.pdf

From its source on the Migneint Moor, to its discharge in Conwy Bay the River Conwy is over 27 miles long. It rises on the Migneint moor where a number of small streams flow into Llyn Conwy, then flows in a generally northern direction, being joined by the tributaries of the rivers Machno and Lledr before settling to a gentler pace below Betws-y-Coed, where it is a salmon and sea trout river and is also joined by the river Llugwy. On the upper reaches above Conwy Falls there are some wonderful places to fish for wild brown trout. The river Llugwy, a major tributary of the Conwy, is a trout and salmon river.From Betws-y-coed the river continues to flow north through Llanrwst, Trefriw and Dolgarrog before reaching Conwy Bay at Conwy.

A 400 mile network of ditches on the Migneint between Ffestiniog and Llanrwst will over time be filled in to restore the area to its natural state. Cut over centuries to improve drainage and provide more land for farming and grouse shooting, the ditches are possibly contributing to the release of carbon.

The aim is to reduce the reduce carbon released from the peat as it dries out. Having taken measurements before the work began, this will continue for four years in order to review the success of the restoration works. Also involved are the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH) and the Countryside Council for Wales (CCW).

Peatlands hold a vast amount of carbon dioxide, locked in their waterlogged soils. It is thought that an amount equal to 35 years’ worth of the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions are locked up in the country’s peaty moorlands. But carbon dioxide is being lost from these areas- and the suspects for this are droughts and rising temperatures drying out the uplands.

Trystan Edwards of the National Trust, who own the land, explains:

“The National Trust has been looking for more evidence that carbon can be contained by peatlands, and we were delighted to be able to collaborate with Bangor University through Michael’s research project. This phase of the ditch blocking work is part funded through the European LIFE project, which is administered through RSPB.”

The Migneint itself covers a range of nearly 200km2, of which the National Trust owns approximately 8,000 acres. The research will allow calculations to be made to measure how much carbon is lost from the peat due to man-made ditches. Additionally, it may be feasible for carbon credits to be generated for the National Trust due to the ditch-blocking, which could be re-invested to continue restoration of the vast moorland.

Ditch-blocking is a popular method of returning peatlands to their original state, but uncertainties remain regarding the overall impact on carbon cycling. By recording and analyzing results from the various measurements of carbon dioxide released from the soil and carried in the water, as well as of water levels, water flows and rainfall over several years, the project can assess whether ditch-blocking causes peatlands to store more carbon, or to release more carbon or methane into the atmosphere.