Peat is a dense, organic material formed by the partial decomposition of plant matter in waterlogged environments, such as peatlands, bogs, or mires. These environments cover approximately three percent of the global land surface. Humans have utilized peat for centuries, primarily as a source of fuel and, more recently, as a soil amendment in horticulture. Despite its utility, industrial extraction and use of peat are environmentally problematic due to profound impacts on climate regulation, biodiversity, and resource sustainability.
Peatlands as Essential Carbon Sinks
Peatlands are the largest natural terrestrial carbon store on the planet, holding more carbon than all other vegetation types, including all the world’s forests, combined. This massive storage results from the unique conditions in these wetlands. Year-round waterlogging creates an anaerobic environment that significantly slows the decomposition of dead plant material.
In these conditions, organic matter rich in carbon cannot fully decay and instead builds up slowly as peat. Peat soils globally contain an estimated 600 gigatonnes of carbon, representing up to 44% of all soil carbon. This carbon has been locked away for thousands of years, mitigating atmospheric carbon dioxide (\(\text{CO}_2\)).
When peatlands are drained and harvested for commercial extraction, the preserved organic material is exposed to oxygen and oxidizes rapidly. This releases the stored carbon back into the atmosphere, predominantly as carbon dioxide (\(\text{CO}_2\)), and methane (\(\text{CH}_4\)), a potent greenhouse gas. Damaged and drained peatlands are estimated to be responsible for up to five percent of global anthropogenic \(\text{CO}_2\) emissions annually.
Destruction of Unique Wetland Ecosystems
Peatlands are specialized wetland ecosystems that support life adapted to nutrient-poor, acidic, and waterlogged soil conditions. These habitats are home to flora and fauna that cannot survive elsewhere. Northern peatlands are dominated by Sphagnum mosses, alongside specialized plants like carnivorous sundews and pitcher plants.
Industrial extraction physically removes this habitat, leading to a direct loss of biodiversity and ecosystem collapse. This destruction affects species ranging from insects and wading birds to larger mammals. The loss of peat swamp forests in Southeast Asia, for instance, has been linked to the decline of the Bornean orangutan population.
The destruction of peatlands also disrupts important ecological services. Healthy peatlands regulate regional hydrological cycles by slowing the flow of water and minimizing the risk of floods and droughts. Once the peatland structure is removed, its ability to filter water and act as a natural sponge is lost, impacting water quality and increasing vulnerability to extreme weather events.
The Functionally Non-Renewable Resource
While peat is an organic material that continues to form, its rate of regeneration is so slow that it is considered non-renewable on a human timescale. The accumulation of peat occurs at a gradual pace, often at a rate of only \(0.16\) to \(0.80\) millimeters per year in temperate regions. It takes thousands of years for a peat deposit to reach a depth commercially viable for harvesting.
The slow rate of natural formation contrasts sharply with the speed and scale of industrial extraction. Commercial operations can remove meters of accumulated peat in a matter of years or decades. This imbalance means the resource is consumed vastly faster than the environment can replace it. Using peat for short-term purposes like garden compost or fuel represents the unsustainable exhaustion of an ancient, finite natural reserve.