LIFEPeatLandUse: Quantification and valuation of ecosystem services to optimize sustainable re-use for low-productive drained peatlands (LIFE12 ENV/FI/000150)

What to do with low-productive drained peatlands that have been left aside from active forestry?

More than half of the original mires have been drained to increase tree growth. However, tree growth has remained low in part of these drained wooded peatlands mainly due to nutrient poor ground. These low-productive drained peatlands, where timber production is not commercially productive without specific maintenance options, cover 20% (ca. 0.8. million ha) of the drained peatland area in Finland, mostly situated in Northern Finland. The key questions concerning the use of peatlands in Finland are: what to do with these low-productive drained peatlands that have been left aside from active forestry?

These low-productive peatlands can be re-used in many different ways. Some of these areas may be suitable for peat harvesting, which is planned to be continued at least for the next decades to safeguard domestic energy production? Areas with high ecological or wildlife values could be restored. The problem is that the impacts of different reuse options on biodiversity, environment and economy are not yet fully understood and thus it is hard to give proposals for re-use actions. The challenge is to develop mechanisms that can balance the conflicting demands on the use of peatlands and to ensure their sustainable use.

LIFEPeatLandUse seeks for solutions

LIFEPeatLandUse is funded by EU Life+ Environment instrument and it consolidates and increases the knowledge base on the impacts of peatland re-use on ecosystem services. The knowledge and tools developed in this project can be used in evaluating the cost-efficiency of different re-use options in low-productive drained peatlands. The budget of this five year project is 2,86 million euros, of which half is EUs’ contribution. Project is a joint project between Finnish Forest Research Institute Metla (coordinating), Universitys of Helsinki and Oulu, Metsähallitus, Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) and Vapo Oy. Ministry of the Environment and Turveruukki OY are participating as a project partners with independent funding.