The Wool Trial
- Carys Mainprize
- Oct 17
- 14 min read
Updated: Oct 20
Peatlands are a key part of Scotland’s net zero targets: over 20% of Scottish land is classed as peatland, and the level of degradation is such that they contribute 15% of Scotland’s annual greenhouse gas emissions – second only to transport. The Scottish Government’s Climate Change Plan for net zero includes a commitment to invest £250 million to support the restoration of 250,000 hectares of peatlands by 2030, delivered through the national partnership programme Peatland ACTION.
One technique of peatland restoration is the use of coir bunds. Bunds are tightly packed coconut coir used to hold back water, protect degradation features from further erosion due to water flow, and can be used to create cells of water on very flat peatlands. Unfortunately, coconut coir is a product imported from across the world and is not necessarily sustainable. What if we could create a different kind of bund much closer to home that was just as effective?
There have been rumblings about using wool in peatland restoration for some time, but only recently have various trials been undertaken – with mixed results. Creating a wool bund product that can replace coir bunds will take some time and lots of experimenting – this is our own story of our Wool Trial.
The very beginning of our trial starts in 2022. CCC, via our project Peatland Connections, were invited to be part of the Galloway Glens Landscape Partnership’s stall at the Stewartry Show. Kerry saw an opportunity to start a conversation around using sheep wool for peatland restoration.
Could we, should we, would we? We wanted to do something that created conversations rather than show presentation boards of our work, and wanted people across the show to engage with us. We decided to make wool bunds, and we were given a load of fleece from Buccleuch Estates and ordered coir* in preparation.
It was myself, Jack, and Lewis at the Show. We each had our own ideas about how to make the bund. One pushed wool through a drainpipe into a coir cylinder. Another rolled wool up and covered it in coir. Finally, the last put fleece on top of coir and rolled like a Swiss roll. It was the latter that was most successful – this was raw fleece, so the added structure helped – and we had all sorts of people involved helping us. Farmers were very interested and intrigued, because this could mean that they would be able to monetise their fleece. We were wondering if we could trial this and pay farmers a bit more than the standardised price they get for their fleece. We’d even identified a potential site for the test, but then the barrier came up because the chemicals that the fleece held could affect water courses.
*Although CCC wanted to move away from coir eventually, early methods of creating wool bunds use coir as a structural piece. This is still significantly less coir than a full coir bund.
Luckily, the idea wasn’t over before it really began. The Environment Agency funded CCC and the University of Glasgow to do a lab-based simulation. Emily recalls:
We couldn’t do a field trial because there was a lack of understanding about the synthetic pyrethroid chemicals on fleece. These are applied for welfare reasons – sheep, especially in our uplands, need to be protected from pests and parasites (sometimes even organic sheep). But we had to understand the chemical residency times of the fleece and the risk of leaching into the surrounding soil and water), so we worked with local farmers who provided sample fleeces and did some chemical analysis in the lab. In this worse-case scenario simulated trial, the chemicals remained in the fleece for longer than expected. Clearly there was a need to understand further – do we need to use pure organic fleece with no chemicals? Can we use scoured wool? And also what would work in terms of how we actually create and use a wool product? To answer some more of these questions, we needed a site trial. We already knew of a site that wouldn’t be suitable for traditional peatland restoration; could we use chemical free wool products there?
This lab-based simulation ran alongside a farmer questionnaire on typical treatments used, treatment targets, current markets for wool and support for the use of wool in restoration. Thanks to the farmers who took part, and to Lewis who was the lead for this questionnaire – Lewis now works to restore peat on Orkney.
It took some time until we saw an opportunity to continue our trial, this time on site rather than in a lab. Anna explains how it came together.
In February 2022, our team surveyed Blawbar and Caplaw Rig on Buccleuch Estates’ Queensberry Estate. True to form, winter was at its best; snow, biting winds, and a temperature dipping to -10°C! The steep climb up revealed two small, but significant areas of micro-erosion and hagging, both sitting right on the watershed. That immediately told us one thing: that water flow management would be key.
Unfortunately, access for machinery to undertake the work was impossible. Both approaches to these areas involved very steep ground, so we knew this restoration project would need to be carried out by hand.
Normally, for this type of project, we would use coir logs (made from coconut fibre and imported from India). Coir logs are effective at slowing water flow and reducing erosion, and we have used them successfully in other projects with great results. But this time, we wanted to try something different.
Sheep’s wool has long been considered for restoration work, but its use has been limited due to concerns over insecticide residues. By using an existing clean wool product, designed to protect trees, we saw an opportunity: could we create wool bunds, shaped and used in the same way as coir logs, and achieve the same results?
The aim of the trial was simple but ambitious:
Test whether wool bunds can be as effective as coir logs in slowing water flow and stabilising peatland.
Could they replace a product that is imported?
Build evidence for a shorter, more sustainable supply chain, while making use of a resource that is currently undervalued in the UK.
The results will help us understand whether sheep’s wool could play a bigger role in peatland restoration — and, in time, help shape a more local, sustainable approach to managing these landscapes.
We had our idea, but putting it into action was a whole team effort! Robin continues our blog by explaining how we sourced the wool and ropes to create our bunds.
To tie the wool bunds in a compact cylinder a selection of ropes and braids in different thicknesses were sourced from Sustainable Rope LTD, who manufacture wool products in their workshop in West Yorkshire. Unlike coir which typically comes from as far as Sri Lanka or India, this rope is created from wool exclusively sourced in the UK, with the entire manufacturing process happening in West Yorkshire. As this was a trial, we wanted to understand how the different products behaved from both a manufacturing and longevity aspect. Would 8mm rope be too difficult to tie? Would 6mm braid break down quicker? Whilst there was no clear winner, we found that we could create tighter bunds with the rope, but the braid was a bit easier on the hands. The thinner rope was easier to work with; however, we need to see whether it stands the test of time and weather up on the hill.
The wool that made up the volume of the bund was sourced from Cheviot Trees. The product is marketed as a tree mulch matt which comes as a 25m x 1m roll. The product is made from unrefined and recycled wool, which retains much of its Lanolin content and is chemical free. The lanolin, which is a natural waxy substance found in the sheep’s wool, has been retained in this product as the scent is meant to deter deer. Whilst interference from deer is a much greater problem for growing trees than it is for peatland restoration, this could be helpful in stopping deer trampling around erosion areas.
Once we knew what products we were using, and where we were installing it, we needed to work out how much wool and rope we needed to buy. Without having the product to hand we did our best at estimating how much rope we would need to create one bund. Creating one bund used more rope and wool than we had expected, but fortunately we managed to get the ratio of wool to rope that we ordered pretty spot on.
As a team, we’ve all been involved in the conversation about shifting from coir logs to sheep wool bunds for ditch blocking. These conversations and the research that underpins them have been progressing over the past three years. In spring 2025, we were in a position to trial sheep wool bunds. Our ducks were in a row; we had the site – a degraded upland bog that was inaccessible for machinery – we had calculated, sourced and priced sheep wool materials, and we had secured funding. Then the fun began; we could buy the materials and get to work making the bunds and installing them. Our venture into new territory began in a sheep shed somewhere northwest of Ae.
Given our work commitments, we couldn’t all be working on this project at the same time. Those who could went to the shed to receive the deliveries: the felted bails of scoured sheep wool and scoured sheep wool rope.
Some trial and error ensued, as Greer remembers.
The bio wool mulch rolls were individually packaged onto pallets of 16 rolls per pallet. Each roll was 1 meter wide and 25 meters long. The first attempt to make the bunds were proving not be productive so the team discussed changing the method. We would unroll half of the roll, then fold it and fold again. Two members of the team would work together to tightly roll the folded 12 meters of wool then once all the folded wool was rolled another member of the team would cut the wool. We then had 2 bunds and were ready to be tied.
We had various thicknesses of rope and braid, 6 mm, 8 mm or 10mm - after all this is a trial!
After much discussion and consultation of a huge knots book, we decided to use a reef knot to tie the bunds. While on site, after many attempts and tutorials from various members of the team on how they tie reef knots, I finally found the best way that worked for me. I preferred tying with the braid; I found it much quicker to work with. To ensure the bunds were secure, we tied them in 4 places along the length and then round the circumference.
We marked each bund with the type of rope or braid we used and size so after they had been installed and time had passed, we could see what one works best for this method.
Kerry adds on;
When rolling material, it tends to spiral out at one end and in at the other. Our aim was for neat, flat ends, with the hand rolled looking the same as the machine rolled product we had received. For this we needed three pairs of hands: guiding, rolling, and pulling.
Rolled, it was ready to be bound. Making sheep wool bunds currently doesn’t come with instructions; we had to figure it out. We took initial inspiration from how you tie up a joint of meet for roasting. The butcher’s knot is a slip knot, and we were after a knot that wouldn’t slip, so we went for a reef knot, a knot all but one of us had to learn. It’s a tricky knot to tie, get the rope in your left hand on the wrong side of the rope in your right hand and you end up with a granny knot. Vicky patiently taught us – repeatedly – until we cracked it. Rolling, knotting, and tightly tying, though tough on the hands and the back, was thoroughly rewarding and fun. Working as a team, laughing, and sharing our Opel Fruits, strawberries, biscuits, and cakey things, the sheep wool bunds bound with sheep wool rope came into being - all 124 of them.
Wool bunds created and secured! They still had to be taken onto site which was some distance away, and then installed. Phoebe and Kerry explain…
The site was an area of eroded gullies and hags tucked away in the Lowther Hills, more than 3 kilometres from the nearest public road. Getting the sheep wool there wasn’t straightforward. The very steep and uneven terrain made finding an accessible route a challenge. But with the help and expertise of a very experienced driver, Daniel Carnegie from DC Restoration Contracts Ltd, we worked together to find a safe and practical way up.
The bunds were taken halfway by tractor and then up to the top in a Can-am Traxter 6x6 UTV, which is described in Farmers Weekly as clumsy but offers plenty of grip, it’s also noisy, uncomfortable, and slow. It really was a fantastic vehicle for the job I know this because the Can-am also transported us. Without this vehicle, and its amazing driver, it would have taken us well over an hour (more like two for me) to walk up to the site. As for the bunds, the only other way to get them to this high and remote site would have been by helicopter.
Team Peat had told me that the views from the site are amazing. Not the day I was there. It was proper driech. The mist, or maybe it was a cloud that we were submerged in, was omnipresent for most of the day, soaking us as we moved through it.
Anna flagged the areas where she thought the bunds would be most effective and we set to work.
The aim was to slow the flow of water, encourage the build-up of small pools, raise the water table, and reduce peat erosion. Team peat started by identifying potential locations in the office using aerial imagery, then once on site, we positioned the bunds in the most effective spots. Understanding how and where the water would flow was key to deciding the bund locations. Working together, we identified the best spots, focusing on places where water gathers speed, such as pinch points and strategic flow pathways, so the bunds could slow it down and help reduce erosion. In some areas the bunds weren’t wide enough, so turf sods were cut to fill the gaps, making sure that the water would be held back behind the bund. Other gullies were too narrow, and we had to cut into the peat to fit the bunds in. In another location, the gully was too deep, so we created a double height bund.
Installing the bunds was all done by hand using spades. We carefully dug small trenches to securely place the sheep wool bunds, hammered in stakes to hold them firmly, and used turves to fill any gaps and keep everything in place. In areas where more water control was needed, we sometimes installed two bunds stacked on top of each other for extra strength. In other spots, we used a technique called cell bunding, creating enclosed cells to hold water and slow its flow more effectively.
As we worked, we could see that the bunds were also working. The water was being held back and beginning to pool. This curious looking landscape of black gouges in the earth took on an even more curious look with white woollen logs cutting across the black peat.
The work was physical and demanding, but getting out on the hill and working with the team was really rewarding. We were fortunate to work with two members of staff from Tweed Forum, as well as Daniel from DCRC whose support and advice was invaluable. It gave us the chance to learn from others, share skills, and solve problems together. It was also a great opportunity for some team bonding, or as we started calling it, team bunding. Being in the fresh air, learning practical restoration skills, and seeing the results at the end of the day was a great experience. We wool definitely remember this one.
My day on the tops was done. I left feeling knackered and happy. It was so exciting to be up there doing hands on restoration work. It was physical and invigorating.
Happy?
More than happy.
Happy and Proud.
Proud to be part of a team that pulls together to make something happen that is going to make a difference.
That wasn’t all that was happening on site. No trial is useful without monitoring, which is Vicky’s job. She continues our blog with an explanation of how and why we monitor.
For all our restoration projects, we rely on a specialised survey drone, the Mavic 3 Enterprise, to capture a bird's-eye view of the site. We programme it to take a series of aerial photographs which are stitched together to produce a detailed image and 3-dimensional model of the entire restoration area. By carrying out these surveys before and after restoration we can track how the landscape changes over time.
This information is invaluable as it allows us to accurately measure the shifts in vegetation cover and, using the 3D elevation models, map how water flows across the site. Modelling the flow of water pre- and post-restoration is incredibly interesting as you can see how effective the placement of the bunds is in slowing the flow of water through the site. Peatland restoration is all about water flow management and hydrology and having this level of insight is incredibly useful for monitoring changes and success.
In addition to the drone surveys, we are also using fixed point photography to record close-up changes in vegetation cover. Another key part of our monitoring focuses on the wool logs we’ve installed and the wool rope we used to bind them. Because wool is a natural material, it will gradually decompose – but the rate at which this happens is essential to understand. If the logs break down too quickly, they won’t provide lasting benefits. By monitoring how the different types of wool rope degrade over time, we’ll be able to recreate the most effective wool bunds for future restoration projects.
This trial is part of a new programme of work, funded by the South of Scotland Enterprise who helped with the costs of materials and the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation. Our Director Emily explains more…
Our uplands are becoming increasingly vulnerable to erosion and water loss. Climate change is very much here and having an impact. This is our observation over the last decade spent designing and delivering peatland restoration in our region. We need to expand and develop approaches to restore our peat soils which underpin the hydrological and ecological function of our uplands.
Our new Resilient Hills programme of work stems from our well-established working relationships with landowners across the region and our extensive experience of delivering peatland restoration. Working collectively the aim of Resilient Hills is to push beyond the now well-established approaches to the restoration of deep peats and focus more attention on the techniques and management approaches that could be used on shallower peats to help reduce water loss and erosion.
We also want to understand how restoration can be targeted to best improve the resilience of our uplands while ensuring integration with land management practices, so it is complimentary to land management objectives and not seen as a compromise but a multi-benefit opportunity. This is critical to achieving restoration at scale to build resilience throughout our vulnerable uplands and catchments.
Resilient Hills will help us answer:
Rates of erosion – Can we do more to stop the extent and acceleration of erosion of our upland soils? What is restorable? Where do we need to prioritise? Can we better understand areas most at risk?
Water availability, regulation and quality – How could a broader approach to peatland restoration and management improve the hydrological function of our uplands and benefit the wider catchment?
Biodiversity – What are the biodiversity benefits of improved water retention in our uplands? Which species could benefit from restoration? How do we monitor changes using cost effective and practical methods and technologies?
Wildfire risk - Can restoration in our uplands reduce the risk of wildfire if used strategically across an area?
Native woodlands – Are woodlands part of the answer to stabilising peatland soils in our uplands? Can considered small scale native woodland creation and management work with peatland restoration and moorland management?
This trial was a mammoth effort from the CCC team and many others. We want to thank:
Sustainable Rope LTD, Cheviot Trees, Buccleuch Estates (for sheds, advice and an exceptional tractor driver), Tweed Forum (for all their strength and energy (as well as some lovely traybakes)), DCRC (to help us with logistics and transportation – without which this would not have been possible), our funders SOSE and The Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, and the CCC team for contributing to the blog, as well as Lewis Robertson for his work while part of our team.
Comments