The Irish Peat Society aims to bring together organisations (including Government bodies, academic institutions, NGOs and forest, peat and energy companies) and individuals with an interest in peatlands and peat.

This year the Irish Peat Society will host a Study Tour and Seminar in County Mayo in association with the National Parks and Wildlife Service to highlight some of the management issues in relation to blanket bogs and heathland.

The study tour will commence on October 16th and travel to Ballycroy National Park to start the day, later taking in restoration sites around the county and visit some exciting new projects.

A seminar will be held on October 17th and we will cover topics such as overgrazing, catchment management, wind farm development and forestry with invited speakers from Scotland and across Ireland.

Our base will be the Hotel Westport, Newport Road, Westport, Co Mayo (www.hotelwestport.ie). Our Irish colleagues will circulate an outline cost in the coming month or so but for the meantime please put these dates in your diary. We encourage all interested members to attend and contribute to this knowledge sharing exercise.

For more information, please contact Mairead Hynes at mairead.hynes (at) bnm.ie or Catherine Farrell, catherine.farrell (at) bnm.ie.

You can also visit and like the Facebook site of the Irish Peat Society www.facebook.com/pages/Irish-Peat-Society/190659956823.