SOCIO-ECONOMICS Progress report

1. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 SOCIO-ECONOMICSProgress report

2. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Outline • Workpackage 1 • Publications:  Common paper • Tasks ahead

3. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Workpackage 1 WP1: Socio-economic appraisal of peat exploitation • Divided into two main parts: • Part1: Assessment of socio-economic importance of peat exploitation and alternative peatland uses Common part of WP1 to compare results between the EU countries • Part 2: Country specific studies analysing in more detail certain specific aspects of peatland utilisation with different methodologies

4. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Workpackage 1 Part 1: Assessment of socio-economic importance of peat exploitation and alternative peatland uses • Regional distribution of peatland and identification of prevailing types of peat and peatland uses • Policy framework • Peat production • Peat trade • Employment • Differentiation in raw peat and processed peat • Alternative peatland uses focussing on agriculture and conservation concepts

5. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Workpackage 1 Part 2: Country specific studies • Finland:Based on a semi-structured stakeholder questionnaire, investigation of three main impacts of peat exploitation in Finland: environmental aspects, employment and re-use of peat production areas. • Switzerland: Evaluation of alternative peatland uses concentrating on agricultural land uses and tourism and peatland management using two case study areas, supported by stakeholder interviews on their perception of the different activities

6. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Workpackage 1 Part 2: Country specific studies • Scotland: Focus on economic evaluation of peat extraction differentiating between different purposes such as whisky production, local usage and peat exports mainly for horticulture. • France: Sociological study of stakeholders perceptions of different peatland uses carried out in three case study areas. • Germany: Focus on theevaluation of the policy framework for peatland management and protection.

7. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Workpackage 1 Reports: • Finland: Work finished and report available. • France: Part 1 finished; part 2 on-going; report available summer 2005 • Germany: Work on-going; report available summer 2005 • Scotland: Work finished; report under revision • Switzerland: Part 1 finished and report available; part 2a finished and report available; part 2b on-going report available summer 2005.

8. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Publications Common paper (other country specific paper planned in Finland and Switzerland) Background and focus of the paper: • Focus on peatland rehabilitation not on further peat extraction • Peat extraction provides only economic and social benefits with high environmental costs • But results provide overall little evidence of economic and social benefits of peat extraction, only in Finland some regional importance • Peatland rehabilitation can provide environmental, economic and social benefits

9. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Publications Figure 1: Benefits and costs from peatland utilisation

10. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Common paper Aim: • To evaluate opportunities and conflicts for peatland utilisation and rehabilitation in Finland, France, Germany, Scotland and Switzerland. Sub-objectives: • To analyse potential economic and social benefits of different re-use options of exploited peatlands and to compare these with the socio-economic benefits from peat extraction. • To discuss the potential environmental implications of re-use options and identify conflicts for peatland rehabilitation.

11. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Common paper Preliminary title and structure: Opportunities and conflicts for peatland rehabilitation in Europe: A socio-economic comparison of case studies from Finland, France, Germany, Scotland and Switzerland • Introduction • Socio-economic importance of peat extraction in the country case studies • Peat extraction, re-use of peatland and peatland protection: sustainable utilisation of peatland • Socio-economic benefits of different re-use options of peatlands in the country case studies and their implications for peatland rehabilitation • Conclusion

12. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Tasks ahead • Paper is based on the work already carried out but requires some additional work • In some countries focus has been more on implications of peat extraction, hence, more work on re-use of peatland is needed • Link to WP7: Define (recommend) different re-use and management options for peatland and their socio-economic implications in the country case studies

13. RECIPE meeting, Scheyern, Germany, 17 - 20 May 2005 Some questions • Do we (RECIPE) focus on re-use options for peatland and their rehabilitation potential (instead of opportunities for peat extraction)? • Does the common paper idea represent the (broad) interests of the whole group? • Future feedback from the whole group: • Implication for possible re-use scenarios and their socio-economic implications (WP7) • information about thresholds beyond which rehabilitation is no longer possible • Future tasks and project resources?