Threats and protection for peatlands in Eastern Canada

Abstract

Peatlands (or mires) are acidic freshwater wetlands that cover 4 million km2 (i.e., 3-4 %) of the planet’s surface, according to recent estimates. Although pristine peatlands are becoming rare in many European countries, most of the peatlands in Canada remain untouched. A recent estimate of the total area of peatlands in Canada is approximately 170 million ha. Precise statistics on peatland destruction and disturbance are difficult to obtain for the entire country, due to its large size. Here, we present detailed information on two provinces of eastern Canada : Québec and New-Brunswick. Approximately 120 000 ha of peatland in Québec have been flooded as a result of construction of hydroelectric dams, the main factor for peat-land lost in that province. It represents 1 % of the total peat-land area. For New-Brunswick, peat extraction is the main threat for peat-lands, with 6 800 ha of peat-land mined for horticultural peat which represents 5 % of the total peat-land resources of that province. Nevertheless, peat-lands in certain regions are strongly affected by human activities and conservation actions must be undertaken to assure equal representation of peatlands across the country. Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New-Brunswick are the four provinces that have achieved the highest conservation rates with 25, 15, 12,5 and 11 % of their peatlands under protection, respectively. The situation is different in other provinces such as Québec, where 3,6 % of the total peatland area occurs in protected areas. Provincial legislation and protection plans need to be further developed in the future to attain international standards.