Hills and uplands are an integral part of the farmed landscape in NI and deliver a wide range of ecosystem services. Ecosystem services can be broadly grouped as:
Provisioning services: the products obtained from ecosystems such as food, fibre, and fresh water;
Regulating: the benefits obtained from ecosystem processes such as pollination and control of the climate and water;
Cultural: the non-material benefits obtained from ecosystems; for example through, cultural heritage, recreation and tourism, sense of place and rural community;
Supporting: ecosystem functions that are necessary for the production of all other ecosystem services, including biodiversity, soil formation and the retention and cycling of nutrients and water.
It is estimated that upland peatlands cover 14% of the land area of NI but hold 53% of the soil carbon stocks (Tomlinson and Milne, 2006).
In this context and in this report, the impacts of the causal actions, pressures and drivers on biodiversity (plant communities and vegetation; soil flora and fauna: invertebrates; birds; mammals; landscape) will be considered. Where relevant and appropriate, impact on soil and peatland quality, water quality and hydrology and the cumulative impact of multiple pressures will also be considered.