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67-541: The area called Hembrug was formerly a hem , that is, a headland later diked in to become part of a polder . Originally called De Hem , it later became named after the bridge across the North Sea Canal ; see below. The Hembrug is the name given to a swing bridge built in 1878 to carry the railroad between Amsterdam and Zaandam in the Netherlands across the North Sea Canal , and to its replacement,

134-460: A habitat aiding peat formation, a phenomenon termed 'habitat manipulation'. Soils consisting primarily of peat are known as histosols . Peat forms in wetland conditions, where flooding or stagnant water obstructs the flow of oxygen from the atmosphere, slowing the rate of decomposition. Peat properties such as organic matter content and saturated hydraulic conductivity can exhibit high spatial heterogeneity . Peatlands, particularly bogs , are

201-506: A form of erosion that occur at the sides of gullies that cut into the peat; they sometimes also occur in isolation. Hags may result when flowing water cuts downwards into the peat and when fire or overgrazing exposes the peat surface. Once the peat is exposed in these ways, it is prone to further erosion by wind, water and livestock. The result is overhanging vegetation and peat. Hags are too steep and unstable for vegetation to establish itself, so they continue to erode unless restorative action

268-475: A longer and higher bridge built between 1903 and 1907, after the canal had been widened to cater for an increase in ship traffic. The newer bridge was approached by a long embankment, to enable the railroad to reach deck level on a moderate grade or slope. During World War II , the bridge, which provided railroad access to the northern part of Holland, was rigged with demolition charges by the Germans, who loaded

335-434: A meaning somewhat opposite to that in coastal context. Peat Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter . It is unique to natural areas called peatlands , bogs , mires , moors , or muskegs . Sphagnum moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most common components in peat, although many other plants can contribute. The biological features of sphagnum mosses act to create

402-421: A new approach to the design of dikes and other water-retaining structures, based on an acceptable probability of overflowing. Risk is defined as the product of probability and consequences. The potential damage in lives, property, and rebuilding costs is compared with the potential cost of water defences. From these calculations follows an acceptable flood risk from the sea at one in 4,000–10,000 years, while it

469-407: A piece of land elevated above its surroundings, with the augmentative suffix -er and epenthetical -d- . The word has been adopted in thirty-six languages. The Netherlands is frequently associated with polders, as its engineers became noted for developing techniques to drain wetlands and make them usable for agriculture and other development. This is illustrated by the saying "God created

536-496: A result of peat drainage, the organic carbon—which built over thousands of years and is normally underwater—is suddenly exposed to the air. It decomposes and turns into carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), which is released into the atmosphere. The global CO 2 emissions from drained peatlands have increased from 1,058 Mton in 1990 to 1,298 Mton in 2008 (a 20% increase). This increase has particularly taken place in developing countries, of which Indonesia , Malaysia and Papua New Guinea are

603-475: A second time, after the explosives had been replaced. The operation of the bridge was twice disrupted by ships colliding with it. On 20 October 1974 Santa Fe Construction's semi-submersible derrick lay barge Choctaw II caused damage which was not completely repaired. The bridge was made obsolete by the construction of the Hemtunnel , which became operational in 1983. On 27 May 1983 the last train passed over

670-490: A small increase in carbon dioxide uptake, meaning that it contributes to the permafrost carbon feedback . Under 2 °C global warming , 0.7 million km of peatland permafrost could thaw, and with warming of +1.5 to 6 °C a cumulative 0.7 to 3 PgC of methane could be released as a result of permafrost peatland thaw by 2100. The forcing from these potential emissions would be approximately equivalent to 1% of projected anthropogenic emissions. One characteristic of peat

737-539: A tenth of the total permafrost area, and also a tenth (185 ± 66 Gt) of all permafrost carbon, equivalent to around half of the carbon stored in the atmosphere. Dry peat is a good insulator (with a thermal conductivity of around 0.25 Wm K ) and therefore plays an important role in protecting permafrost from thaw. The insulating effect of dry peat also makes it integral to unique permafrost landforms such as palsas and permafrost peat plateaus. Peatland permafrost thaw tends to result in an increase in methane emissions and

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804-487: Is also reported that peat regrowth takes place only in 30–40% of peatlands. Centuries of burning and draining of peat by humans has released a significant amount of CO 2 into the atmosphere, and much peatland restoration is needed to help limit climate change . Peat forms when plant material does not fully decay in acidic and anaerobic conditions. It is composed mainly of wetland vegetation: principally bog plants including mosses , sedges and shrubs. As it accumulates,

871-477: Is available in considerable quantities. It is burned to produce heat and electricity . Peat provides around 4% of Finland's annual energy production. Also, agricultural and forestry-drained peat bogs actively release more CO 2 annually than is released in peat energy production in Finland. The average regrowth rate of a single peat bog, however, is indeed slow, from 1,000 up to 5,000 years. Furthermore, it

938-551: Is cut by hand and left to dry in the sun. In many countries, including Ireland and Scotland , peat was traditionally stacked to dry in rural areas and used for cooking and domestic heating. This tradition can be traced back to the Roman period. For industrial uses, companies may use pressure to extract water from the peat, which is soft and easily compressed. In Sweden, farmers use dried peat to absorb excrement from cattle that are wintered indoors. The most essential property of peat

1005-423: Is either fibric, hemic, or sapric. Fibric peats are the least decomposed and consist of intact fibre. Hemic peats are partially decomposed and sapric are the most decomposed. Phragmites peat are composed of reed grass, Phragmites australis , and other grasses. It is denser than many other types of peat. Engineers may describe a soil as peat which has a relatively high percentage of organic material. This soil

1072-712: Is estimated that in 1997, peat and forest fires in Indonesia released between 0.81 and 2.57 gigatonnes (0.89 and 2.83 billion short tons; 0.80 and 2.53 billion long tons) of carbon; equivalent to 13–40 percent of the amount released by global fossil fuel burning, and greater than the carbon uptake of the world's biosphere. These fires may be responsible for the acceleration in the increase in carbon dioxide levels since 1998. More than 100 peat fires in Kalimantan and East Sumatra have continued to burn since 1997; each year, these peat fires ignite new forest fires above

1139-608: Is one in 100–2,500 years for a river flood. The particular established policy guides the Dutch government to improve flood defences as new data on threat levels become available. Major Dutch polders and the years they were laid dry include Beemster (1609–1612), Schermer (1633–1635), and Haarlemmermeerpolder (1852). Polders created as part of the Zuiderzee Works include Wieringermeerpolder (1930), Noordoostpolder (1942) and Flevopolder (1956–1968) Several cities on

1206-483: Is problematic because it exhibits poor consolidation properties—it cannot be easily compacted to serve as a stable foundation to support loads, such as roads or buildings. In a widely cited article, Joosten and Clarke (2002) described peatlands or mires (which they say are the same) as the most widespread of all wetland types in the world, representing 50 to 70% of global wetlands. They cover over 4 million square kilometres [1.5 million square miles] or 3% of

1273-506: Is retaining moisture in container soil when it is dry while preventing the excess water from killing roots when it is wet. Peat can store nutrients although it is not fertile itself—it is polyelectrolytic with a high ion-exchange capacity due to its oxidized lignin. Peat is discouraged as a soil amendment by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew , England, since 2003. While bark or coir -based peat-free potting soil mixes are on

1340-635: Is sometimes used in freshwater aquaria . It is seen most commonly in soft water or blackwater river systems such as those mimicking the Amazon River basin. In addition to being soft and therefore suitable for demersal (bottom-dwelling) species such as Corydoras catfish, peat is reported to have many other beneficial functions in freshwater aquaria. It softens water by acting as an ion exchanger ; it also contains substances that are beneficial for plants and fishes' reproductive health. Peat can prevent algae growth and kill microorganisms. Peat often stains

1407-769: Is taken. In June 2002, the United Nations Development Programme launched the Wetlands Ecosystem and Tropical Peat Swamp Forest Rehabilitation Project. This project was targeted to last for five years, and brings together the efforts of various non-government organisations. In November 2002, the International Peatland (formerly Peat) Society (IPS) and the International Mire Conservation Group (IMCG) published guidelines on

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1474-565: Is the average depth of the boreal [northern] peatlands", which store around 415 gigatonnes (Gt) of carbon (about 46 times 2019 global CO 2 emissions). Globally, peat stores up to 550 Gt of carbon, 42% of all soil carbon , which exceeds the carbon stored in all other vegetation types, including the world's forests, although it covers just 3% of the land's surface. Peat is not a renewable source of energy , due to its extraction rate in industrialized countries far exceeding its slow regrowth rate of 1 mm (0.04 in) per year, and as it

1541-401: Is the bioaccumulation of metals concentrated in the peat. Accumulated mercury is of significant environmental concern. Large areas of organic wetland (peat) soils are currently drained for agriculture, forestry and peat extraction (i.e. through canals ). This process is taking place all over the world. This not only destroys the habitat of many species but also heavily fuels climate change. As

1608-407: Is the most efficient carbon sink on the planet , because peatland plants capture carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) naturally released from the peat, maintaining an equilibrium. In natural peatlands, the "annual rate of biomass production is greater than the rate of decomposition", but it takes "thousands of years for peatlands to develop the deposits of 1.5 to 2.3 m [4.9 to 7.5 ft], which

1675-456: The "Wise Use of Mires and Peatlands – Backgrounds and Principles including a framework for decision-making" . This publication aims to develop mechanisms that can balance the conflicting demands on the global peatland heritage to ensure its wise use to meet the needs of humankind. In June 2008, the IPS published the book Peatlands and Climate Change , summarising the currently available knowledge on

1742-819: The Falkland Islands and Indonesia ( Kalimantan [Sungai Putri, Danau Siawan, Sungai Tolak], Rasau Jaya ( West Kalimantan ) and Sumatra ). Indonesia has more tropical peatlands and mangrove forests than any other nation on earth, but Indonesia is losing wetlands by 100,000 hectares (250,000 acres) per year. A catalog of the peat research collection at the University of Minnesota Duluth provides references to research on worldwide peat and peatlands. About 7% of all peatlands have been exploited for agriculture and forestry . Under certain conditions, peat will turn into lignite coal over geologic periods of time. Peat can be used as fuel once dried. Traditionally, peat

1809-786: The Paraíba Valley region (in the state of São Paulo ) have polders on land claimed from the floodplains around the Paraíba do Sul river. Bangladesh has 139 polders, of which 49 are sea-facing, while the rest are along the numerous distributaries of the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna River delta. These were constructed in the 1960s to protect the coast from tidal flooding and reduce salinity incursion. They reduce long-term flooding and waterlogging following storm surges from tropical cyclones . They are also cultivated for agriculture. The Jiangnan region, at

1876-996: The West Siberian Lowland , the Hudson Bay Lowlands and the Mackenzie River Valley. There is less peat in the Southern Hemisphere, in part because there is less land. The world's largest tropical peatland is located in Africa (the Democratic Republic of Congo). In addition, the vast Magellanic Moorland in South America (Southern Patagonia / Tierra del Fuego ) is an extensive peat-dominated landscape. Peat can be found in New Zealand , Kerguelen ,

1943-486: The Yangtze River Delta , has a long history of constructing polders. Most of these projects were performed between the 10th and 13th centuries. The Chinese government also assisted local communities in constructing dikes for swampland water drainage. The Lijia (里甲) self-monitoring system of 110 households under a lizhang (里长) headman was used for the purposes of service administration and tax collection in

2010-597: The tanning properties of the acidic water, as well as by the antibiotic properties of the organic component sphagnan. A famous example is the Tollund Man in Denmark. Having been discovered in 1950 after being mistaken for a recent murder victim, he was exhumed for scientific purposes and dated to have lived during the 4th century BC. Before that, another bog body, the Elling Woman , had been discovered in 1938 in

2077-542: The 11th century. The oldest extant polder is the Achtermeer polder, from 1533. As a result of flooding disasters, water boards called waterschap (when situated more inland) or hoogheemraadschap (near the sea, mainly used in the Holland region) were set up to maintain the integrity of the water defences around polders, maintain the waterways inside a polder, and control the various water levels inside and outside

Hembrug - Misplaced Pages Continue

2144-461: The 17th century), the Norit factory (which made activated carbon ), and Bruynzeel  [ nl ] (doors and kitchens). Busy in the early morning and the evening with workers, the station was almost deserted during the day. It was opened on 1 January 1907 and originally had a station master . Latterly Hembrug became an unmanned halt, with wooden shelters on each of the two platforms. Services to

2211-548: The West Siberian peatland. Palsa mires have a rich bird life and are an EU-red listed habitat, and in Canada riparian peat banks are used as maternity sites for polar bears. Natural peatlands also have many species of wild orchids and carnivorous plants. For more on biological communities, see wetland , bog or fen . Around half of the area of northern peatlands is permafrost -affected, and this area represents around

2278-428: The air. Polders are at risk of flooding at all times, and care must be taken to protect the surrounding dikes. Dikes are typically built with locally available materials, and each material has its own risks: sand is prone to collapse owing to saturation by water; dry peat is lighter than water and potentially unable to retain water in very dry seasons. Some animals dig tunnels in the barrier, allowing water to infiltrate

2345-522: The bogland remains constantly wet which helps promote peat production. Most modern peat bogs formed 12,000 years ago in high latitudes after the glaciers retreated at the end of the last ice age . Peat usually accumulates slowly at the rate of about a millimetre per year. The estimated carbon content is 415 gigatonnes (457 billion short tons) (northern peatlands), 50 Gt (55 billion short tons) ( tropical peatlands ) and 15 Gt (17 billion short tons) (South America). Peat material

2412-477: The bridge. Denied the status of Rijksmonument , the spans were removed later that year, and the bridge piers felled by explosives in the spring of 1985. From 1907 until 1982, Hembrug was the name of a halt on the railroad line north of the bridge, built for the employees of three factories: the Artillerie-Inrichtingen (a State-owned munitions factory, in operation under various names since

2479-550: The capital of Moscow with a toxic smoke blanket . The situation remained critical until the end of August 2010. In June 2019, despite some forest fire prevention methods being put in place, peat fires in the Arctic emitted 50 megatonnes (55 million short tons; 49 million long tons) of CO 2 , which is equal to Sweden's total annual emissions. The peat fires are linked to climate change, as they are much more likely to occur nowadays due to this effect. Peat "hags" are

2546-487: The central pier with 400 boxes, each containing 3 kilograms of explosives. Twice those explosives were removed by Dutch resistance operatives: on the night of 26 September 1944, two members of the local swimming team, Jaap Boll and Remmert Aten, dived down and got into the central pier by way of an underwater opening, and removed the explosives. The Germans discovered that the explosives had been removed when they saw packaging material floating around, so Remmert Aten swam down

2613-428: The concept of peat archives, a phrase coined by influential peatland scientist Harry Godwin in 1981. In a peat profile there is a fossilized record of changes over time in the vegetation, pollen, spores, animals (from microscopic to the giant elk), and archaeological remains that have been deposited in place, as well as pollen, spores and particles brought in by wind and weather. These remains are collectively termed

2680-455: The fastest-growing top emitters. This estimate excludes emissions from peat fires (conservative estimates amount to at least 4,000 Mton/CO 2 -eq./yr for south-east Asia). With 174 Mton/CO 2 -eq./yr, the EU is after Indonesia (500 Mton) and before Russia (161 Mton), the world's second-largest emitter of drainage-related peatland CO 2 (excl. extracted peat and fires). Total CO 2 emissions from

2747-603: The ground. In North America, peat fires can occur during severe droughts throughout their occurrence, from boreal forests in Canada to swamps and fens in the subtropical southern Florida Everglades . Once a fire has burnt through the area, hollows in the peat are burnt out, and hummocks are desiccated but can contribute to Sphagnum recolonization. In the summer of 2010, an unusually high heat wave of up to 40 °C (104 °F) ignited large deposits of peat in Central Russia, burning thousands of houses and covering

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2814-623: The halt ceased on 23 May 1982. In 1983 part of the station was moved to Krommenie and converted to a garage. [REDACTED] Media related to Hembrug at Wikimedia Commons 52°25′11″N 4°49′40″E  /  52.41972°N 4.82778°E  / 52.41972; 4.82778 Polder A polder ( Dutch pronunciation: [ˈpɔldər] ) is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as dikes . The three types of polder are: The ground level in drained marshes subsides over time. All polders will eventually be below

2881-604: The land and freshwater surface of the planet. In these ecosystems are found one third of the world's soil carbon and 10% of global freshwater resources. These ecosystems are characterized by the unique ability to accumulate and store dead organic matter from Sphagnum and many other non-moss species, as peat, under conditions of almost permanent water saturation. Peatlands are adapted to the extreme conditions of high water and low oxygen content, of toxic elements and low availability of plant nutrients. Their water chemistry varies from alkaline to acidic. Peatlands occur on all continents, from

2948-509: The main source of water for large cities, including Dublin. Peat wetlands also used to have a degree of metallurgical importance in the Early Middle Ages , being the primary source of bog iron used to create swords and armour. Many peat swamps along the coast of Malaysia serve as a natural means of flood mitigation, with any overflow being absorbed by the peat, provided forests are still present to prevent peat fires. Peat

3015-540: The peat archives. In Quaternary Palaeoecology , first published in 1980, Birks and Birks described how paleoecological studies "of peat can be used to reveal what plant communities were present (locally and regionally), what period each community occupied, how environmental conditions changed, and how the environment affected the ecosystem in that time and place." Scientists continue to compare modern mercury (Hg) accumulation rates in bogs with historical natural archives records in peat bogs and lake sediments to estimate

3082-433: The peat holds water. This slowly creates wetter conditions that allow the area of wetland to expand. Peatland features can include ponds, ridges and raised bogs . The characteristics of some bog plants actively promote bog formation. For example, sphagnum mosses actively secrete tannins , which preserve organic material. Sphagnum also have special water-retaining cells, known as hyaline cells, which can release water ensuring

3149-551: The polder, with a liangzhang (粮长, grain chief) responsible for maintaining the water system and a tangzhang (塘长, dike chief) for polder maintenance. In Germany, land reclaimed by diking is called a koog . The German Deichgraf system was similar to the Dutch and is widely known from Theodor Storm 's novella The Rider on the White Horse . In southern Germany, the term polder is used for retention basins recreated by opening dikes during river floodplain restoration ,

3216-485: The polder. Water boards hold separate elections, levy taxes, and function independently from other government bodies. Their function is basically unchanged even today. As such, they are the oldest democratic institutions in the country. The necessary cooperation among all ranks to maintain polder integrity gave its name to the Dutch version of third-way politics —the Polder Model . The 1953 flood disaster prompted

3283-799: The polders into an inaccessible swamp, which allowed the Allied armies to stop the German army . The Netherlands has a large area of polders: as much as 20% of the land area has at some point in the past been reclaimed from the sea, thus contributing to the development of the country. IJsselmeer is the most famous polder project of the Netherlands. Some other countries which have polders are Bangladesh , Belgium , Canada and China . Some examples of Dutch polder projects are Beemster , Schermer , Flevopolder and Noordoostpolder . The Dutch word polder derives successively from Middle Dutch polre , from Old Dutch polra , and ultimately from pol- ,

3350-683: The potential human impacts on the biogeochemical cycle of mercury, for example. Over the years, different dating models and technologies for measuring date sediments and peat profiles accumulated over the last 100–150 years, have been used, including the widely used vertical distribution of 210Pb, the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-SMS), and more recently the initial penetration (IP). Naturally mummified human bodies, often called " bog bodies " have been found in various places in Scotland, England, Ireland, and especially northern Germany and Denmark. They are almost perfectly preserved by

3417-441: The presence of a heat source (e.g., a wildfire penetrating the subsurface), it smoulders. These smouldering fires can burn undetected for very long periods of time (months, years, and even centuries) propagating in a creeping fashion through the underground peat layer. Despite the damage that the burning of raw peat can cause, bogs are naturally subject to wildfires and depend on the wildfires to keep woody competition from lowering

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3484-447: The primary source of peat; although less common, other wetlands, including fens , pocosins and peat swamp forests , also deposit peat. Landscapes covered in peat are home to specific kinds of plants, including Sphagnum moss, ericaceous shrubs and sedges . Because organic matter accumulates over thousands of years, peat deposits provide records of past vegetation and climate by preserving plant remains, such as pollen. This allows

3551-545: The reconstruction of past environments and the study of land-use changes. Peat is used by gardeners and for horticulture in certain parts of the world, but this is being banned in some places. By volume, there are about 4 trillion cubic metres of peat in the world. Over time, the formation of peat is often the first step in the geological formation of fossil fuels such as coal , particularly low-grade coal such as lignite . The peatland ecosystem covers 3.7 million square kilometres (1.4 million square miles) and

3618-614: The rewetting of peatlands and revegetation of native species. This acts to mitigate carbon release in the short term before the new growth of vegetation provides a new source of organic litter to fuel the peat formation in the long term. UNEP is supporting peatland restoration in Indonesia. Latvia has been the biggest exporter of peat in the world by volume, providing more than 19.9% of the world's volume, followed only by Canada with 13% in 2022. In 2020, Latvia exported 1.97 million tons of peat, followed by Germany with 1.5 and Canada with 1.42 million tons. Nevertheless, although first in

3685-625: The rise, particularly in the UK, peat is still used as raw material for horticulture in some other European countries, Canada, as well as parts of the United States. Peatland can also be an essential source of drinking water , providing nearly 4% of all potable water stored in reservoirs . In the UK, 43% of the population receives drinking water sourced from peatlands, with the number climbing to 68% in Ireland. Catchments containing peatlands are

3752-628: The same bog about 60 metres (200 ft) from the Tollund Man. She is believed to have lived during the late 3rd century BC and was a ritual sacrifice. In the Bronze and Iron Ages, people used peat bogs for rituals to nature gods and spirits. The distinctive ecological conditions of peat wetlands provide a habitat for distinctive fauna and flora. For example, whooping cranes nest in North American peatlands, whilst Siberian cranes nest in

3819-511: The state whilst 23% belong to the municipalities Bogs in Latvia are considered important habitats due to their ecological values, and up to 128,000 hectares, or 40% of the areas in the territory, are protected by environmental laws. The most famous national parks and reserves are the Ķemeri National Park , Cenas tīrelis and Teiči Nature Reserve . The climate, geography and environment of Finland favours bog and peat bog formation. Thus, peat

3886-569: The structure; the muskrat is known for this activity and hunted in certain European countries because of it. Polders are most commonly, though not exclusively, found in river deltas, former fenlands , and coastal areas. Flooding of polders has also been used as a military tactic in the past. One example is the flooding of the polders along the Yser River during World War I . Opening the sluices at high tide and closing them at low tide turned

3953-543: The surrounding water level some or all of the time. Water enters the low-lying polder through infiltration and water pressure of groundwater , or rainfall, or transport of water by rivers and canals. This usually means that the polder has an excess of water, which is pumped out or drained by opening sluices at low tide . Care must be taken not to set the internal water level too low. Polder land made up of peat (former marshland) will sink in relation to its previous level, because of peat decomposing when exposed to oxygen from

4020-513: The topic. In 2010, IPS presented a " Strategy for Responsible Peatland Management ", which can be applied worldwide for decision-making. Peat extraction is forbidden in Chile since April 2024. Often, restoration is done by blocking drainage channels in the peatland, and allowing natural vegetation to recover. Rehabilitation projects undertaken in North America and Europe usually focus on

4087-410: The tropical to boreal and Arctic zones from sea level to high alpine conditions. A more recent estimate from an improved global peatland map, PEATMAP, based on a meta-analysis of geospatial information at global, regional and national levels puts global coverage slightly higher than earlier peatland inventories at 4.23 million square kilometres (1.63 million square miles) approximately 2.84% of

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4154-812: The water table and shading out many bog plants. Several families of plants including the carnivorous Sarracenia (trumpet pitcher), Dionaea (Venus flytrap), Utricularia (bladderworts) and non-carnivorous plants such as the sandhills lily , toothache grass and many species of orchid are now threatened and in some cases endangered from the combined forces of human drainage, negligence and absence of fire. The recent burning of peat bogs in Indonesia, with their large and deep growths containing more than 50 billion tonnes (55 billion short tons; 49 billion long tons) of carbon, has contributed to increases in world carbon dioxide levels. Peat deposits in Southeast Asia could be destroyed by 2040. It

4221-714: The water yellow or brown due to the leaching of tannins . Peat is widely used in balneotherapy (the use of bathing to treat disease). Many traditional spa treatments include peat as part of peloids . Such health treatments have an enduring tradition in European countries, including Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany and Austria. Some of these old spas date back to the 18th century and are still active today. The most common types of peat application in balneotherapy are peat muds , poultices and suspension baths . Authors Rydin and Jeglum in Biology of Habitats described

4288-436: The world by volume, in monetary terms, Latvian comes second in the world behind Canada . As an example, Latvia's income from exports was US$ 237 million. Latvia's peat deposits have been estimated to equal 1.7 billion tons. Latvia, as Finland due its climate has several peat bogs, which account for 9.9% of the country's territory. More than two thirds of the licensed areas for peat extraction are state-owned; 55% belong to

4355-479: The world land area. In Europe, peatlands extend to about 515,000 km (199,000 sq mi). About 60% of the world's wetlands are made of peat. Peat deposits are found in many places around the world, including northern Europe and North America. The North American peat deposits are principally found in Canada and the Northern United States. Some of the world's largest peatlands include

4422-542: The world, but the Dutch created the Netherlands". The Dutch have a long history of reclamation of marshes and fenland, resulting in some 3,000 polders nationwide. By 1961, about half of the country's land, 18,000 square kilometres (6,800 sq mi), was reclaimed from the sea. About half the total surface area of polders in northwest Europe is in the Netherlands. The first embankments in Europe were constructed in Roman times. The first polders were constructed in

4489-466: The worldwide 500,000 km of degraded peatland may exceed 2.0 Gtons (including emissions from peat fires), which is almost 6% of all global carbon emissions. Peat can be a major fire hazard and is not extinguished by light rain. Peat fires may burn for great lengths of time, or smoulder underground and reignite after winter if an oxygen source is present. Peat has a high carbon content and can burn under low moisture conditions. Once ignited by

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