Restoration of degraded peatlands is seen as the ideal solution for management of such environments (Anderson et al 2006), with the potential benefit being the return of peatland to being a sink of carbon dioxide. As peatlands are the single largest carbon reserve in the UK it is necessary that an understanding of the impact of restorative efforts is gained. Efforts to assess restoration have largely been made on the basis of vegetation recovery; few studies have been made on the physio-chemical conditions of restored peatlands (Anderson et al 2006) which are crucial to the health of the...