Three of Scotch whisky’s biggest companies are uniting in efforts to restore and protect peatland on Islay.
Suntory Global Spirits, Diageo and The Glenmorangie Company will donate £1.6m ($2.1m) to restore and protect 1,000 hectares of peatland. All three companies own distilleries on Islay and use the island’s endless peat bogs in industrial quantities to produce smoky single malt whisky.
While the island has an abundance of peat, its plundering over two centuries has seen the loss of wildlife habitats and the release of significant levels of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
The whisky industry’s use of peat in production has come under scrutiny in recent years, not least because of the Scotch Whisky Association’s commitment to reaching net zero across all production by 2040. Until there is an eco-friendly alternative to peat, the restoration of peatland will be a significant step to reaching that target.
Managed by the RSPB at The Oa nature reserve, the money will focus on making the peatland more resistant to flooding, improving resilience against wildfires and providing improved habitat for native species. Peatlands have been cited as a major carbon sink, storing ten times the amount of carbon as the UK’s forests.
The Oa nature reserve has suffered from centuries of draining for domestic peat cutting. It wasn’t just for the whisky industry doing the damage, though, as much of the island ran on peat fire until electricity arrived from the National Grid in 1962.
“This incredibly exciting partnership at the Oa will allow us to return some of Scotland’s large and internationally important peatlands back to health,” said RSPB Scotland director Anne McCall.
“It’s a shining example of how conservation and industry can work hand in hand in restoring Scotland’s incredible and unique habitats. We are extremely encouraged to see businesses collaborating to share the responsibility of environmental restoration and protection. “Healthy peatlands also help improve water quality, which should benefit both wildlife and people.”
