Power to the Peatlands: Landmark conference in Antwerp to fight Europe’s climate and biodiversity crisis on peat soils

15/9/2023 Antwerp/Greifswald At September 19-21, 2023, the "Power to the Peatlands" landmark conference in Antwerp, Belgium, is expected to be the largest gathering of peatland experts in Europe, attracting over 550 attendees. It is aiming to position peatlands at the core of European nature and climate policies. This is particularly timely after the July vote of the European Parliament on the Nature Restoration Law, in which peatland targets were provisionally deleted.

As the German science-policy-practice interface for peatland related questions – locally and globally - the Greifswald Mire Centre is closely involved in the organisation of the conference. We supported the programme preparation in all committees and provide, via the PRINCESS project, facilitation of the conference declaration.

With 15 talks and ten poster presentations, the GMC is represented during the conference. In their presentations, GMC members will answer questions such as how paludiculture can be used in fens to combat eutrophication, biodiversity loss and the climate crisis. Or whether cattails filter enough water for peat moss cultures and how the peatlands of the Baltic Sea region have developed over the last four decades. he poster presentations range from cattail and peat moss cultivation in Germany, to analyses of peatland development via satellite data in the Baltic Sea region, to a literature study on peatlands of the Amazon region. Here the full programme for the three-day symposium. 

The message of the conference is not only a wake-up call for European Union policymakers to do more for our crucial peatlands. Also the member states should urgently take action. Germany, which started the Action Programme Natural Climate Protection to implement the National Peatland Protection Strategy, mobilised large-scale funds for peatland restoration compared to other European countries. Safeguarding peatland restoration beyond the current legislative period and aligning it with the National Strategic Plan of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) remain key challenges.

During the conference’s closing session on September 20th, the participants will co-create a joint declaration featuring evidence-based policy recommendations for European peatlands. With over 550 delegates representing diverse sectors from all over Europe and beyond, the call for urgent action on peatland conservation, restoration and sustainable use cannot be ignored. In the European Parliament’s July vote on the EU Nature Restoration Law, ambitious peatland restoration objectives were disappointingly neglected. A swift agreement among EU institutions on robust peatland targets, especially for the ones under agricultural use, is now imperative for initiating large-scale rewetting action to elevate the critical benefits of peatlands.

The event is organised by Natuurpunt, University of Antwerp and the partners of Interreg Care-Peat and ADMIRE, together with the European chapter of the Society for Ecological Restoration, the International Mire Conservation Group, Wetlands International, Greifswald Mire Centre, Society of Wetland Scientists and Ecologic Institute.

Contact details:

Nina Körner, nina.koerner@greifswaldmoor.de

Katrien Wijns, katrien.wijns@natuurpunt.be, +32 497 05 29 21

Robin Verachtert, robin.verachtert@natuurpunt.be, +32 497 05 22 62

For journalists it is possible to attend the Power to the Peatlands conference for reporting opportunities. If interested, please contact Katrien or Robin.

Updates via our Twitter account: @greifswaldmoor or @CarePeat with #Power2Peatlands

Pls. excuse crosspostings.