Over 75% of UK wetlands have been destroyed—restoring them would help prevent wildfires

A recent wildfire in south Wales has highlighted the urgent need to restore the UK's depleted wetlands. Over 75% of the country's bogs, fens, marshes and other wetlands have been drained and destroyed since 1700, drastically reducing the landscape's ability to retain water. This change has turned many areas into dry, fuel-rich peatlands that are particularly vulnerable to wildfires.

In the recent blaze above Blaenavon, over 4,000 hectares were burned and 200 military personnel were called in to assist. Smoke from the fire could be seen as far away as Cardiff and Gloucestershire. While we cannot prevent all wildfires, restoring wetlands could make our landscapes more resilient to them by keeping soils and vegetation wetter, providing less fuel for flames and acting as natural firebreaks.

Wetlands do not have to mean flooding productive farmland or converting every hillside into a bog. In many cases, restoring existing wetlands or creating new ones through simple measures such as bunds, reconnecting rivers to floodplains, and reintroducing sphagnum moss can help. The benefits of wetland restoration can begin to appear within a few years, although full ecosystem recovery takes decades.

The recent drought in 2025 showed that bunded areas containing sphagnum moss remained wetter than unrestored peat. A wildfire in Scotland in 2018 was also stopped by recently restored peatland where the water table had risen and the ground was wetter. To effectively protect Britain from wildfires, restoration should be targeted to create wetter, more resilient areas near communities, forestry and other high-risk areas. While we cannot make Britain fireproof, restoring wetlands can make them more fire-resilient.