{"id":3691,"date":"2026-03-26T13:29:40","date_gmt":"2026-03-26T13:29:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/?p=3691"},"modified":"2026-03-26T13:29:44","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T13:29:44","slug":"local-people-learn-about-fen-restoration-at-laois-and-offaly-community-events","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/ga\/events\/local-people-learn-about-fen-restoration-at-laois-and-offaly-community-events\/","title":{"rendered":"Local People Learn About Fen Restoration at Laois and Offaly Community Events"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Wednesday, 11&nbsp;March 2026, Ireland:<\/strong>&nbsp;People&nbsp;from&nbsp;across&nbsp;Laois and Offaly&nbsp;gathered&nbsp;in recent weeks to learn about the restoration of Ireland\u2019s rare fen wetlands, as part of a series of public information evenings organised by&nbsp;T\u00f3char&nbsp;Midlands Wetland Restoration.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The events, held at the&nbsp;Killeshin&nbsp;Hotel in Portlaoise and the County Arms Hotel in Birr, brought together landowners, farmers, community&nbsp;groups&nbsp;and residents interested in the future of wetlands across the Midlands. In total, 80 people attended the two evenings.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The sessions explored how fens function and why restoration work is now underway across the region. Fens are a distinctive type of peatland fed by groundwater rather than rainfall and support specialised plants,&nbsp;wildlife&nbsp;and important ecosystem functions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The evenings also outlined the scale of restoration currently being examined across the Midlands, where the project is assessing 36 fen sites covering approximately 1,472 hectares of habitat.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Presentations highlighted how restoration planning involves hydrological modelling, ecological&nbsp;surveys&nbsp;and drainage mapping to&nbsp;determine&nbsp;the most&nbsp;appropriate actions&nbsp;for each&nbsp;site. Landowners&nbsp;were able to talk to the team directly about their fen locations by viewing on the bespoke digital mapping system how their land intersects with these wetlands.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text has-media-on-the-right is-stacked-on-mobile\"><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Shirley Clerkin, Project Manager for\u00a0T\u00f3char\u00a0Midlands Wetland Restoration, said the strong turnout reflected growing interest in wetlands and their role in local landscapes: <\/strong><em>\u201cIt was hugely encouraging to see such engagement from communities in Laois and Offaly and to be able to respond to queries about fens with landowners and others. These evenings allow us to explain the importance of wetlands in the landscape, what fen restoration involves, share the science behind it and hear directly from people living and working near these wonderful places. .\u00a0Restoring wetlands is about working with communities as well as restoring nature.\u00a0I\u2019d\u00a0like to thank everyone for attending, giving their time to meet with\u00a0us\u00a0and sharing their knowledge.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"772\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-John-Clendennen-TD_Shirley-1-772x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Man and woman standing in front of pull up.\" class=\"wp-image-3702 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-John-Clendennen-TD_Shirley-1-772x1024.jpg 772w, https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-John-Clendennen-TD_Shirley-1-226x300.jpg 226w, https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-John-Clendennen-TD_Shirley-1-768x1019.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-John-Clendennen-TD_Shirley-1-1157x1536.jpg 1157w, https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-John-Clendennen-TD_Shirley-1-1543x2048.jpg 1543w, https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-John-Clendennen-TD_Shirley-1-scaled.jpg 1929w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 772px) 100vw, 772px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Speakers also discussed several fen sites across the region including&nbsp;Clonaslee&nbsp;Eskers and Derry Bog SAC,&nbsp;Kilnaseer&nbsp;SAC, Mannin and&nbsp;Annaghmore&nbsp;Lough Fen, highlighting how restoration opportunities vary depending on local ecological and hydrological conditions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Technical experts from Arup, who are supporting delivery of the fen restoration programme, outlined the hydrological processes that underpin these habitats.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-Gerry-5-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Man in blue shirt standing in front of a presentation slide that contains bullet points about digital mapping data including EPA &amp; GSI maps on soils and hydrology as well as EU Copernicus Data maps that contain  water &amp; wetness as well as vegetation index.\" class=\"wp-image-3700 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-Gerry-5-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-Gerry-5-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-Gerry-5-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-Gerry-5-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260226_BirrPIEFens_-Gerry-5-2048x1536.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Gerry Baker, a&nbsp;hydrologist&nbsp;working on the fen restoration&nbsp;project from&nbsp;Arup&nbsp;explained:<\/strong>&nbsp; \u201cOur role on the projects is to provide the multi-disciplinary technical&nbsp;expertise&nbsp;needed to ensure the successful restoration of these critical wetland sites. We are applying a rigorous, evidence-based approach to the hydrological and ecological assessments, which is essential for developing effective, long-term restoration measures. This initiative aligns perfectly with our commitment to sustainable development and&nbsp;leveraging&nbsp;our engineering and environmental consulting skills to address key climate and biodiversity challenges.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Experts also highlighted how wetlands can&nbsp;benefit&nbsp;communities by helping regulate water across the landscape, slowing runoff, reducing peak flows during heavy&nbsp;rainfall&nbsp;and supporting water availability during dry periods.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The events provided information for landowners interested in&nbsp;participating&nbsp;in restoration initiatives. Participation in restoration measures is entirely voluntary and fully funded. In addition, financial incentives are available through the&nbsp;T\u00f3char&nbsp;Midlands Wetland Restoration Incentive Scheme. The scheme offers once-off payments of \u20ac1,450 per hectare, with payments ranging from \u20ac725 to \u20ac15,000 depending on the size of the area involved.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The public information evenings form part of wider engagement taking place across the Midlands as the three-year \u20ac12 million&nbsp;T\u00f3char&nbsp;Midlands Wetland Restoration project progresses.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The project is co-funded by the Government of Ireland and the European Union through the EU Just Transition Fund Programme and is managed by the National Parks and Wildlife Service within the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To learn more about the&nbsp;T\u00f3char&nbsp;Project, share your views, sign up to our&nbsp;newsletter&nbsp;or&nbsp;participate&nbsp;in upcoming initiatives, visit&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.tocharwetlands.ie\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">www.tocharwetlands.ie<\/a>&nbsp;or follow us on Instagram @wetlandsrestoration or Facebook and LinkedIn&nbsp;T\u00f3char&nbsp;Wetlands Restoration.\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Wednesday, 11&nbsp;March 2026, Ireland:&nbsp;People&nbsp;from&nbsp;across&nbsp;Laois and Offaly&nbsp;gathered&nbsp;in recent weeks to learn about the restoration of Ireland\u2019s rare fen wetlands, as part [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":3706,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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