Peat
Peat is a solid fuel source most often found in marshlands, moorlands or heathlands (often collectively known as peatlands). It has been used for centuries as a fuel and aid to agriculture, and is still used in these ways today.
Peat
Peat is a dense, earth-like material that is made from partially decayed plant matter. Because of surrounding environmental conditions, this plant matter does not decay completely (due to a combination of acidic surroundings and lack of oxygen): this semi-decayed plant matter settles and, over time, forms layers which compact as more matter is deposited above to form dense, energy-rich peat. If left long enough - over geologic time-scales – peat will eventually form lignite, a relatively impure form of coal.
Peat Bogs
Peat bogs are the most common type of area where peat is formed. These wetlands are usually found in the northern hemisphere, and today are often found in countries that have relatively little urban development relative to their size: many modern cities are founded on wetlands that were drained to produce stable land for foundations. Ireland, Scotland, Finland, Russia, Scandinavia, Canada, northern Germany and Alaska are all countries that still have substantial areas of peat bog: indeed, in some of these (Scotland, Ireland and Finland) peat is still harvested by householders and crofters for use as fuel.
Peat Pellets
When peat is used in solid fuel heating, in most areas it is not in the form of rough-cut sods. One of the most convenient ways of using peat as fuel in solid fuel stoves is when the peat is supplied as peat pellets. Peat pellets are small, dried, compacted forms of peat that are made with the same process that is used to manufacture wood pellets. They are very convenient to use and have a high calorific value (meaning that they produce a high amount of energy when burned when compared to similar fuels), so they are highly appropriate for use in domestic wood burning stoves and solid fuel boilers, though like wood pellets they are expensive when compared to other fuels. Because of their efficiency they are increasingly used for industrial and commercial space heating.
Peat Briquettes
Peat briquettes are halfway between raw peat sods and peat pellets, and have some of the qualities of each. They are larger than pellets, and would be used in a fire or stove in a similar fashion to wooden logs. They are slow burning and easier to light than pellets, though while they are compacted, they do not have as high a calorific value.
Peat Moss
Peat moss, more properly known as sphagnum, is moss that has partially decayed and is on the way to becoming peat (though sometimes peat with a high sphagnum content is also called peat moss). It is more often used in gardening and agriculture than as a fuel. Though it is often beneficial, improving the quality of most soil, its use is controversial as the technique used to harvest it results in the destruction of many plant and animal species that rely on wetland areas. When most peat was harvested by smallholders and subsistence farmers this wasn’t such a problem, but modern industrial methods of mining peat means increasing amounts wetland is now endangered.
Peat Free Compost
For this reason, many gardeners are now turning to peat free compost. It contains waste biomass rather than peat or peat moss, and is thus considered to benefit the environment in two ways: it stops peat being mined and recycles plant materials left as waste from other processes.