FMQs: SNP going backwards on peat restoration
The Scottish Government is scaling back its ambitions on peat restoration, say the Scottish Greens.
The issue was raised at First Minister’s Questions this afternoon by Green MSP Ariane Burgess.
Ariane used her first question to ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government is still on track to restore 250k hectares of peatland by 2030.
The target appeared to be diluted in last week’s Climate Change Plan, which proposed a longer journey to 400k hectares of peatland restoration by 2040 without the 2030 milestone. Instead of the original target, the revised plan would see just shy of 145k hectares restored by 2030.
In her second question to the First Minister, Ariane said:
“80% of our peatlands, approximately 1.6 million hectares, are degraded.
“It means they’re one of our largest single sources of emissions. They can’t support nature restoration, nor provide solutions to issues like flooding.
“It’s vital that we urgently step up restoration efforts. And yet, in its new draft climate change plan, this Government is slowing things down. Increasing restoration by only 10% a year is a major deceleration compared to the previous 2030 target.
“First Minister, why is your Government going backwards on this key policy, at the same time as pledging to do more for climate and nature?”