A policy analysis of peatland-related policies - pressures, ecosystem services, conservation and restoration

Abstract

Over the last fifty years, peatlands have shifted from being intensively drained and exploited to being at the heart of debates about fighting climate change and other environmental crises. Despite current efforts towards peatland restoration and conservation, political action is not reaching the desired targets. Are policies really providing consistent and coherent solutions? This study reviews how peatland issues have been addressed in the international political discourse and how policies in Europe and Sweden are responding to such issues to halt peatland degradation. The study follows a multi-step approach comprising i) policy selection, ii) framing process, and iii) policy coherence analysis. The results reveal that European and Swedish policies from different fields (biodiversity and conservation, climate change, agriculture, forestry, land use and soil, energy, and water) broadly emphasise the need for peatland protection and conservation. However, these policies lack coherence in addressing the different impacts affecting peatlands, comprehending certain ecosystem functions and services, and identifying explicit nature-, financial-, and social capacity-based solutions for their restoration and sustainable use. This evidence highlights the need to foster coordination among decision-makers within and across different policy fields at both governance levels.