Blakemere Moss was drained in around 1815, supposedly by prisoners from the Napoleonic Wars. During the 19th century, it was unsuccessfully planted with oak, and later with Scots pine. The Forestry Commission planted the moss with pine and western hemlock during the 1940s, which proved uneconomic. In 1996 as part of a landscape planning exercise for Delamere Forest a hydrological survey was commissioned to look at the feasibility of clear-felling the area that is now Blakemere Moss. Once the hydrological survey confirmed that it was possible to re-water the site, clear-felling took place in 1998 and the moss was allowed to re-water by damming the drainage points. The restored moss now provides a habitat for a variety of wildlife, particularly waterfowl. Following the success of the project, it was announced in January 2010 that a further of drained fenland at four sites in the Delamere Forest area would be rewatered as part of Natural England's Wetland Vision scheme.