Peat harvesting

County Mayo

Although commercial peat harvesting in Ireland is (or is almost) banned, we see here the obvious signs of harvesting on a big scale. In the background are big piles of white plastic bags holding the peat bricks (sods), ready for transportation.

~ Peat bogs grow slowly, accumulating around 0.5 to 1 mm of peat each year, and the water prevents the plants from decomposing. As a result, many areas of UK (and Irish) peat bog have been accumulating gradually for as much as 10,000 years, and can be up to 10m deep.

Nb The Pennine moorland tops, we see from our house (in the UK) is largely composed of peat too.

See next photo