The Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss Assoc. responds

> Date: Mon, 13 Jul 1998 16:56:53 -0700 
> To: jknoble@warwick.net 
> From: Brooke Barr-Nobert 
> Subject: Please pass on to Jennifer Riley - Thanks! 
>
> Dear Jamie:
> The following letter is intended for Jennifer Riley.  I am sending this on
> behalf of Gerry Hood, who is the President of the Canadian Sphagnum Peat
> Moss Association.   Would you be so kind as to pass this on to her, as per your
> offer at the bottom of this e-mail.
>
> I would like to encourage you to read it as well and urge you to post
> this on your site to accurately inform your surfers/readers.
>
> Thank you for taking the time to learn these facts.
>
> Sincerely,
> Brooke Barr-Nobert
>
>
>
> July 13, 1998
>
> Ms. Jennifer Riley
>
>
> Dear Ms. Riley:
>
> I read with concern your recent posting on the internet entitled, ATo all of
> you who use peat.@ In it you describe conditions of US peat bogs you have
> witnessed, then include a statement that implies that similar conditions
> exist in Canada. I need to assume that your reference to Canada was
> unintentional, as most of your facts are incorrect if you are implying that
> these conditions exist in Canada. I would like to address your comments from
> the Canadian point of view. First let me give you some facts about Canadian
> peatlands and the use thereof.
>
> There are more than 270,000,000 acres, 25% of the world's supply, of which
> our industry harvests on less than 40,000 acres, or one acre in 6,000. -
> (Zoltai, S.C. & Rubec, C. 1991) Canadian Peat Harvesting and the Environment
>
> Peat is renewable and in terms of its accumulation, peat in Canada is growing
> more than 70 times as fast as it is being harvested. [According to an issues
> paper entitled "Canadian Peat Harvesting and the Environment," published by
> the North American Wetlands Conservation Council (Canada)] I agree that it
> takes hundreds of years to replenish harvested peat bogs. The key is that
> once a bog is restored, it starts to regenerate the peat and continues all
> the important functions of a peatland. There should be no reason not to use
> natural resources if it is done as part of an overall wise use plan that
> includes conservation, and restoration of harvested bogs to functioning
> peatlands.
>
> You state that: ADuring this process, water quality is adversely affected,
> since this activity releases heavy metals into the water, usually serves to
> acidify waters, thus eliminating trout from the receiving waterway." I presume
> you have some research that shows this to be the case. In Canada, the
> guidelines set out by the provinces for peat harvesting address most of the
> concerns you express. The following information is taken from Guidelines for
> Peat Mining Operations in New Brunswick, Natural Resources and Energy, author:
> Jacques Thibault.  
>
> Acidity of Water 
> The low pH values of bog waters are caused by weak, well-buffered acids and
> under normal conditions waters released from mine sites do not appear to have
> any significant adverse effect on receiving waters. (Gemtec Ltd. 1994)
>
> Water Chemistry 
> The impact of bog water on the chemistry of receiving waters depends on local
> geological and hydrological conditions but in general, no major adverse
> effects are expected. (Shotyk, 1986)
>
> The drainage from peat bogs in Canada is usually filtered by allowing the
> water to overflow adjacent wetlands, thus removing sediments and harmful
> ingredients. If there is not enough area for overflow, large settling ponds
> are installed within the regime.
>
> Habitat Change 
> Peatland development plans must now incorporate significant natural areas
> that will not be ditched or mined (10 to 20%). These areas which remain
> biologically productive support flora and fauna populations that will later
> assist the peatland restoration process. 
> You also state that: AThe first step is that a wetland area, typically a
> forested pristine wetland is bulldozed. All vegetation is removed and
> wildlife species that are relatively mobile leave the area, the rest are
> destroyed.@
>
> In Canada, we remove the top few inches of vegetation then start our
> harvesting in layers. We remove about 3 - 5 inches of peat moss per year.  We
> only remove the younger, less decomposed peat, then stop harvesting while
> there is still a thick layer of peat on which to start regeneration.
>
> You also state that: AOnce all of the plant and animal life is removed, the
> area is no longer a wetland. It cannot remove pollutants from the water. It
> can no longer serve as a storage area for floodwaters. It does not provide
> any meaningful wildlife habitat. It no longer serves to discharge or recharge
> groundwater.@ 
>
> This is not the case in Canada.
> It will take hundreds of years to replace all the peat that was removed, but
> even while it=s being harvested it continues the most important functions of a
> bog:   
> C filtering water,  
> C acting as a water collection basin, 
> When harvesting stops and regeneration begins, we will have a peatland that
> resumes:  
> C accumulating carbon, and 
> C providing habitat for flora and fauna. 
> The one function we cannot replace is a virgin bog that stores
> geo-paleantological history. For that reason, it is important to identify
> bogs for conservation in all areas of Canada.
>
> We know that under the right circumstances, sphagnum moss will re-establish
> itself on a harvested bog. Soon thereafter, from this collection of mosses,
> peat will accumulate, re-establishing a layer of peat that will continue to
> grow. 
>
> Because a single bog can be harvested for between 15 and 50 years before they
> are left for restoration, harvesting has been completed on less than 3,000
> acres. There are good examples of harvested bogs in Canada where more than
> one foot of sphagnum moss has re-grown, unaided, during the 10 to 15 years
> since harvesting has ceased.  These bogs look like and provide the functions
> of virgin bogs.
>
> Even though Canada does not have peat supply concerns, the industry is
> looking for ways to accelerate peat bog regeneration. Until recently, peat
> bogs have been left to regenerate, a process that can take up to 20 years.
> New research in ways to restore bogs quickly, indicates that time can be
> shortened to five to eight years.
>
> The research projects, in which the industry has invested $1 million, include
> transplanting live sphagnum plants, seeding spores of sphagnum taken from
> live plants, and covering the harvested bog with the top spit from a living
> bog. This research is now complete and the results are excellent. From the
> techniques developed through the research, the research team, has produced a
> restoration instruction manual entitled Peatland Restoration Guide.
>
> Peatlands will regenerate themselves and it is the policy of the Canadian
> peat industry, and supported by government, to ensure peat is a sustainable
> resource. The Canadian peat producers have adopted a strict Preservation and
> Reclamation Policy that calls for, among other things:   
> C identifying bogs for preservation through environmental assessment; 
> C using careful harvesting techniques so that restoration can be readily
> achieved; 
> C leaving at least three feet of peat at the bottom of the bog; and 
> C returning of harvested bogs to functioning wetlands. 
> There should be no concern with continuing to use Canadian peat moss in
> gardening. The resource is huge, the amount of extraction small by comparison
> and the industry and government are committed to sustainable development. 
>
> I do agree with you that the excavation of sedge peat and hypnum peat in the
> US could be cause for concern. To my knowledge, there have not been ways
> developed to restore these types of peat deposits. Removing all of these peat
> deposits is harmful to the water systems and to the flora and fauna that
> inhabit them.
>
> I urge you to give your readers both sides of this issue by posting this
> information on your website or bulletin board. I invite you to visit our
> website for further information. <http://www.peatmoss.com/>
> If you would like to e-mail your mailing address, I will send you a copy of
> the Peatland Restoration Guide and the Issues Paper to you.
>
> If you have any questions, please call me toll free at 888-873-7328 or e-mail
> me at <ghood@peatmoss.com>. 
>
> Sincerely,
>
>
> Gerry Hood
> President, CSPMA
>
> GOH/bn
> enc
>
"I have no particular talent. I am merely inquisitive."
 A. Einstein

jknoble@warwick.net
Z6/5, NW NJ
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