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Peat, people and the path to net zero: Meet Heather Johnstone

As the UK accelerates towards a cleaner energy future, ensuring renewable energy developments work hand in hand with nature has never been more important.

One of the environments receiving increasing attention is peatland. Often overlooked, peat plays a vital role in storing carbon, supporting biodiversity, helping to regulate water flows and improving resilience to climate change. Yet much remains unknown about the best ways to manage and restore peat affected by development.

Meet Heather Johnstone

That's why RWE has partnered with the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) through a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) to explore an important question: can peat excavated during renewable energy developments be successfully reused to reinstate peatland habitats efficiently and effectively.

Leading this work is Heather Johnstone, RWE's KTP Associate: Peatland Management Project Officer. Based in Inverness, Heather will spend the two years bridging the gap between academic research and practical application.

A person in a white hard hat labeled "RWE" and an orange high-visibility jacket smiles slightly in a grassy peatland under a gray overcast sky. Portrait of Heather Johnstone.

Heather Johnstone, RWE's KTP Associate: Peatland Management Project Officer

We caught up with Heather to find out more about her role, why peat matters and what success could look like.

  • "My role is all about connecting academia and industry. Lots of fantastic research happens within universities, but it can sometimes be difficult to translate those findings into practical methods that can be used on the ground.

    I first became interested in peatlands while volunteering with the RSPB. I was introduced to the incredible complexity of the habitat and the important role peatlands play in the environment. Later, working as a peatland scientist at the Environmental Research Institute, I realised just how much there still is to learn.
    What excites me most about this project is that we're exploring an area where there is very little existing academic research. There's a real opportunity to generate knowledge that could make a practical difference."

  • "The Protection and restoration of peatlands is becoming a great focusfor the renewable energy sector and for wider society.

    As we work towards net zerobiodiversity goals, and peatland restoration goals, there is an expectation that developments do the very best they can for the environment. National planning frameworks and environmental legislation rightly place a strong emphasis on protecting and restoring important habitats.

    Peatlands sit right at the intersection of climate action and nature resilience."

    A group of people in orange, red and tan jackets stand on a gravel path beside a tall white wind turbine under cloudy gray skies.

  • "Peatlands are extraordinary ecosystems.

    Although they cover only around three per cent of the Earth's surface, they store around 30 per cent of the world’s terrestrial carbon. That makes them one of our most important natural carbon stores.
    Here in Scotland, peatlands cover around 20 per cent of the land area, but around 80 per cent are considered degraded.

    They also support a unique range of biodiversity. You find species in peatland habitats that you wouldn't expect elsewhere, including fascinating plants such as sundews, which are very small carnivorous plants, able to trap insects with their sticky hairs..

    Peatlands also help slow the movement of water through the landscape, reducing flood risk. Around 72 per cent of the UK's reservoirs are fed from peaty catchments, supplying drinking water to more than 28 million people.

    Their importance really can't be overstated."

    A person wearing a beige baseball cap, light blue shirt and black vest kneels in a grassy field dotted with white cottonlike seed heads, holding a small metal instrument and a coiled white rope.

  • "We want to understand what good practice looks like when it comes to excavating peat and what successfulreinstatement looks like.

    Can we retain the integrity of the peat during the process? Can it still provide environmental benefits afterwards? Can we improve outcomes?

    Ultimately, we're trying to establish whether using excavated peat for reinstatement is both viable and beneficial."

  • "There's a genuine gap in the evidence base.

    There's been very little research looking specifically at how excavated peat can be reused for reinstatement purposes. That's surprising when you consider how important effective peatland management has become.

    This project gives us the opportunity to investigate something new and potentially develop approaches that others can learn from."

    Three smiling workers wearing white hard hats labeled "RWE", safety glasses and bright yellow or orange vests stand on heather moorland with wind turbines.

  • "RWE has projects across Scotland, which means we have opportunities to trial innovative approaches in real-world settings.

    The company already has experience working on peatland issues and strong relationships with contractors and specialists.

    It's also exciting that this is RWE's first Knowledge Transfer Partnership. KTPs are often associated with areas like computing or data science, so it's fantastic to see one focused on ecology and the environment.

    And because RWE operates internationally, the lessons we learn could potentially have value beyond the UK."

  • "I hope this work contributes to making renewable energy development even more sustainable.

    It's important that our transition to greener energy isn't undermined by avoidable environmental impacts. If we can identify better ways of managing excavated peat, it could really benefit the whole renewable sector.

    I also think it could help build confidence among local communities. In Scotland particularly, peat has long been part of people's history and identity. Demonstrating that we're taking its protection seriously really matters."

    Person in a bright orange jacket and white hard hat stands in brown moorland holding a tablet, a white wind turbine visible under an overcast sky.

  • "The biggest question is viability.

    Even if an approach delivers environmental benefits, it also needs to be practical and achievable. We need to understand whether the benefits of reinstating excavated peat outweigh the costs involved."

  • "For me, success would be being able to demonstrate that using excavated peat within peatland habitats restoration operations can work in practice, helping to restore degraded peatland habitats and at the same time maximise the value of the excavated peat by establishing conditions to keep this resource functional.

    If we can provide evidence, practical guidance and greater confidence in these approaches, then we've achieved something valuable that can hopefully be applied to policy."

What's next?

Heather will work alongside colleagues at RWE and researchers from the University of the Highlands and Islands to test ideas, gather evidence and share findings with the wider sector.

Preliminary insights are expected during the first year of the project, with a final report to follow at its conclusion.

By bringing together academic expertise and industry experience, this pioneering partnership aims to deepen our understanding of one of the UK's most valuable natural resources – helping ensure the journey to net zero supports not only cleaner energy, but healthier ecosystems too.

  • Peatlands are one of nature's slowest-growing habitats. Peat typically accumulates at a rate of around 1 millimetre per year under the right conditions. That means just one metre of peat can take around 1,000 years to form.
  • Although peatlands cover only around 3% of the world's land surface, they store more carbon than all the world's forests combined. This makes them one of the planet's most important natural carbon stores.

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