Bangor University spearheads UK research into restoring vital temperate rainforests - Bangor University

Bangor University has launched a pioneering programme of research into the restoration and regeneration of the UK’s rare and ecologically rich temperate rainforests, in partnership with The Wildlife Trusts and funded by Aviva.

The work forms part of a landmark £38 million commitment by Aviva to help tackle the climate and nature emergencies by restoring rainforests across the British Isles. As part of this, funding has been allocated to cutting-edge academic research at leading institutions with Bangor University at the forefront.

Temperate rainforests, sometimes called Atlantic rainforests, are among the most biodiverse habitats in the UK, but they have been reduced to a fraction of their former extent. Researchers at Bangor are now asking key questions about how we can restore these forests more effectively and inclusively, and the contribution that this will make to combatting climate change.

In their first project, the Bangor research team are investigating the overlooked role of mosses, lichens and other plants that grow on the trunks and branches of trees in combating climate change. They will measure the rate at which these plants absorb the greenhouse gases that cause global warming from the atmosphere. This will fill an important gap in existing knowledge about the overall contribution of temperate rainforest systems to the global carbon cycle.

The Bangor researchers are also exploring the best ways to restore rainforest habitat, including how to establish trees in sites currently dominated by invasive species like bracken, and comparing approaches such as planting, directly sowing seeds, or letting trees establish from naturally dispersed seeds. They will also research a set of restored rainforests of different ages to find out the rate at which they are recovering as resilient ecosystems. This project is a collaboration with the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales.