International Bog Day will take place this Sunday, July 27, 2025, as a celebration of the character, culture, and quiet beauty of Ireland's wetlands.

Wetlands are one of Ireland's most distinctive habitats, supporting thousands of rare species, and vital to the country's wildlife.

Research commissioned this year by the Tóchar Midlands Wetlands Restoration Project found that over half of people agree that restoration delivers ecological, economic and social benefits.

According to Tóchar, 48% of people believe the environmental benefits outweigh the economic ones, and 66% of adults in Ireland recognise the role wetlands play in flood prevention.

On International Bog Day, the Tóchar project is encouraging people to celebrate wetlands and fens, a lesser known, but equally important, wetland type.

While bogs are rain-fed, fens are wetland areas fed by groundwater or springs. Fens tend to support a wide variety of plants and insects, including orchids, dragonflies, reed bunting, and sedge warblers.

Fens also play a role in absorbing excess rainfall, filtering water, storing carbon, and supporting rare biodiversity.

The Minister of State for Nature, Heritage and Biodiversity, Christopher O’Sullivan believes that fens and bogs are some of Ireland's "most iconic landscapes", but that they are also vital infrastructure.

He said: "They manage floods, store carbon and support local well-being. Through the Tóchar project, we’re restoring them in a way that’s informed by science and led by the people who know these places best. 

"The midlands of Ireland is renowned for its diverse wetland areas, they are places of great beauty and wildness, I would encourage everyone to celebrate this unique landscape and visit a wetland, whether that be a bog of a fen this weekend," Minister of State O'Sullivan added.

However according to Tóchar, most of Ireland’s fens are in an unfavourable condition, with drainage and scrub encroachment a major threat.

The project, managed by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) is working to improve this and restore over 1,470ha of fen landscapes.

Restoration plans are being developed for 36 fen sites, with the first phase beginning in the autumn.