Destruction of a Peat Bog
Lindow Moss - The Destruction of a Peat Bog
Introduction
Lindow Moss, a raised mire peat bog used as common land since the medieval period came to international attention with the discovery of the Iron Age "Lindow Man" in 1984.
The site is known for its flora and fauna such as Tail Cotton Grass, Common Cotton Grass and Green Hairstreak Butterfly.
However, to quote from the 2002 book "Lindow and the Bog Men" by Christine Pemberton and Matthew Hyde:
"What remains of Lindow Moss, the peat bog flora and fauna it has supported for thousands of years is in its death throes. It is dying from dessication".
Yet it is also clear that with urgent action in the form of a cessation of peat extraction and the blocking of the man made drainage channels at least some of this treasure has a chance of preservation and restoration.
This article gives some background to where we find ourselves today.
Recent history
Over the past century the Moss has been under attack from suburban development and peat extraction, reducing the area to a tenth of its original 600 hectare size.
Croghan Peat Industries Ltd of Meare, Somerset purchased the Moss in 1997-8. The owners also own E.J. Godwin (Peat Industries) Ltd of Meare.
Saltersley Common Preservation Society (SCPS) was set in response to local concerns about the company's proposed activities and the impact on the local hydrology and wildlife. It forced Cheshire County Council (CCC) to insist on an Environmental Statement (ES) in 1997. This was work was contracted to Terraqueous, coincidentally also based in Meare.
Terraqueous called in The Environmental Consultancy of the University of Sheffield (ECUS). They reported that 'the impact of the further deeper workings…. will almost certainly be to lower water table levels in the regional acquifer'. ECUS then proposed various mitigation measures.
Croghan objected to the finding and were allowed by Cheshire County Council (CCC) to bring in a second opinion - which in most aspects agreed with ECUS.
Croghan, meanwhile, went on to submit a planning application in 1999 to build 90 houses on the Moss. When the application was rejected, the process to continue extraction proceeded.
Eventually, in 2003, a Planning Decision Notice permitting extraction was issued by CCC containing 51 conditions to protect the hydrology, flora and fauna - especially the rare water voles. (click here to view: Planning Decision ). In a letter dated 2 May 2003 CCC stated 'once the conditions become valid the County Council will be seeking to rigorously enforce compliance' (CCC Letter May 2003)
In August 2005, after evidence collection and lobbying by SCPS, Croghan Peat were prosectuted by CCC and fined £700 plus legal fees of £5175 having admitted to breaching an order that forbids digging in established drains and ditches.
Terraqueous called in a company called Biota to prepare and submit the Water Vole Protection Scheme. Unfortunately, whatever Biota recommended appears to be inadequate as evidenced by the lowering of the water table.
As of 2009 the Nature Reserve Protection Scheme is incomplete. The Settling Pond Design and Sluice Control Structure have not been started, nor have parts of the Hydrological Code of Good Practice. The measuring of the water table was finally implemented in 2007. As a result of the delays it is estimated that the water table has dropped up to five feet, with disastrous results, especially for the water voles, Britain's fastest disappearing mammal.
Digging was still taking place earlier this year where evidence of water voles was found last year.. Communication with CCC in May 2008 revealed that sluice control would not installed for the time-being so as "to protect the water vole habitat". SCPS pointed out that without water there is no water vole habitat!
Another indication of how the water table has dropped is the recent fire that raged for three days destroying 150,000 sq ft of peat bog taking the lives of many protected wildlife species. Previous fires were easily put out as the peat was waterlogged. One wonders how much this fire cost the Cheshire Council tax payer.
The product
When SCPS members met Croghan's owners in 2000 they were assured that Lindow peat was the finest in the country and was mixed with inferior peat to improve the product.
Yet surveys commissioned by SCPS with The Scotts Company (UK) Ltd and ADAS UK Ltd suggested otherwise with the peat understrood to be of a poor quality with uses limited primarily to amateur gardening.
Please see PDF attachments for ADAS Report into peat quality:
Conclusion
The peat being extracted from Lindow Moss appears to be of little commercial value yet it continues to be excavated to the great detriment of the area.
One wonders why this is so - speculation that Croghan's are holding out for a windfall from a property development would seem to have credence based on the experience of 1999.
In late 2008 there were rumblings of a new submission via firm called r-gen Development, for 30 "eco homes" in 2009. This has failed to materialise - perhaps due to the current recession - so peat extraction continues.
Why CCC (now superceded by Cheshire East Council) who have not 'rigorously enforced' the conditions they themselves introduced is open to question.
A question worth asking is: "Is Lindow Moss being sacrificed in an attempt to make money through residential development while a valuable wildlife, archaeological and historical site could be lost to the nation forever?"
Fact file/Further Information
- It takes approximately 100 years to create one metre of peat.
- Lindow Peat Bog goes to a depth of about 30 metres and is a perfect carbon record of that environment over the last 4-5,000 years.
- Lindow Man (a.k.a. Lindow Pete) was found on April 19, 1984 and was dated to 200AD, since then excavations have gone deeper and have currently exposed a Bronze Age forest where tree roots face upwards.
- The bog started life as a Scot's pine forest and was "drowned" by a rising water table which eventually receded leaving an acidic environment which turned to moss then to peat.
- Peat bogs store Carbon Dioxide and are a very useful tool against the Greenhouse Effect.
Click here to view a film of the history and threats to the Moss made in 2011:
Report prepared by Tony Evans of the Saltersley Common Preservation Society.