Hydrologic Restoration of Peat Soils on Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge

The peatland on GDS was drained over the last two centuries to support logging practices. As a result, a network of over 150 miles of drainage ditches and logging roads disrupts the natural flow of both groundwater and surface water, exacerbating the vulnerabilities of the swamp to increased temperatures and drought from climate change. Additionally, because the existing peat has dried out from drainage, it has lost much of its water retention properties. This leads to increased frequency of flooding events and a higher risk of wildfire. The USFWS has identified nature-based solutions, such as rewetting peatland, as a key strategy in the USFWS Climate Change Action Program to unify its climate response in accordance with the Department of the Interior’s Nature Based Solutions Policy.