A project funded by the Welsh Government and Carmarthenshire County Council has begun to reveal the mysteries locked away in areas of peat bog on six commons near Brechfa and Llanfynydd. The unploughed soils of semi-natural vegetation managed through long term commoning have provided the ideal conditions for peat bog development. The results have been amazing.
The thickness of the peat making up the bogs was measured using a depth probe across the common land sites. At two of the sites – Pyllau Cochion and Figyn commons – the peat was more than than 8.5 m thick. This is significant in a Welsh national context as the maximum peat thickness at notable Welsh bogs such as Cors Fochno (Borth) and Cors Caron (Tregaron) is of this order. It also tells us that the formation of peat at theses Carmarthenshire bogs has been more-or-less continuous since the last ice age.
From calculations made from the results it has been calculated that the amount of carbon stored in the peat equates to the direct carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from driving for the population of Carmarthen town for 8.6 years. With concentrations of CO2 in the atmosphere growing rapidly in the last couple of years it is ever more important to manage these bogs so that they can continue to store carbon for us.
Peat accumulates very slowly over time - about 1 mm per year - so the bogs with deep peat are likely to have witnessed the very beginning of human society in Wales. These areas of common land can reveal a fascinating record of the Welsh landscape and how it had been farmed and managed over the ages. .
Many different types of material become trapped in peat as it forms. These range from pollen grains to whole plant leaves and stems. Inorganic remains, such as soot and heavy metals (dating from the start of the Industrial Revolution), add to stories that peat can tell us. Evidence of volcanoes that erupted thousands of miles away can be seen by the thin layer of volcanic ash (tephra) that falls on, and is captured by, the bog. The project hopes to work with a university to find out more about what these bogs tell us about the history of our landscape.
These bog habitats are also important for us. They provide us with fresh water by filtering out pollution and can act as sponges, reducing flood risk through the storage of rainwater. The sympathetic management of common land so that atmospheric carbon continues to be sequestered and retained in permanently wet peat is a significant component in action to address climate change.
For more information contact, Isabel Macho Carmarthen County Council on 01267 234567
