Canadian Peat Harvesting and Its Effects on the Environment

Abstract

Canadian sphagnum peat moss has long been the preferred base for growing media of horticulturists in North America and Europe. Growers, horticultural scientists, and soil media producers have been using peat moss for several decades with excellent results. In the past 5 years, there has been some concern raised, especially in the U.K., that harvesting peat is harmful to the environment. The situation in Canada is far different from that in Europe. The Canadian peat industry is a world leader in restoration research because of its efforts to find the best ways to return harvested bogs to functioning wetlands. The first stage of research just completed by Laval Univ. shows that peat bogs can be effectively, economically, and easily restored. Additional research findings will be described in this paper. But, the conclusion is clear: Peat moss is a safe, environmentally friendly growing medium. This paper also will describe the state of resource in Canada as outlined by an independent environmental group, the steps taken by the Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss Assn. to ensure that resource development is sustainable, as well as the process of how peat is harvest and how bogs are restored to functioning wetlands.