1. Carmarthenshire Peat Bogs
Geography

2. Describe the above image.

3. Why are they important and how can we protect them?
Aims
What are peat bogs?
Why are they important and how can we protect them?

4. What are peat bogs?
Peat bogs can form in rain fed hollows or dips in the ground which have poor drainage, and which hold water. Where the water is acid, and/or where conditions are anaerobic, this prevents the more usual decay of the vegetation resulting in the formation of peat. This can take place over thousands of years. 
Keywords
Fen: a low and marshy or frequently flooded area of land.
Peat: a brown material made up of partly decomposed vegetation forming a layer on acidic, boggy, ground.
Silt: fine sand or clay carried by running water which settles at the bottom of water.

6. Peat: a brown material made up of partly decomposed vegetation forming a layer on acidic, boggy, ground. Peat takes thousands of years to form.
Some gardeners use peat moss to balance the pH level in soil. It has an acid pH, so it will help acid loving plants like tomatoes, strawberries and blueberries grow.

7. Questions
Why do gardeners like using peat?
Why is using peat such a bad thing?
What are suitable alternatives to using peat for gardening?

8. Why is using peat a bad thing?
Peat is also used burnt as a fuel – Burning peat releases stored carbon back into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide causes global warming.
Peat cutting destroys habitats removing peat which has taken thousands of years to form. The removal of the peat bogs destroys plant and animal life living within the peat bog habitat, threatening biodiversity.
Peat bogs contain a timeline of vegetation over thousands of years. They are like a time capsule of organic matter which would usually rot and be lost. They also contain evidence of burning and heavy metals from the air which can include volcanic eruptions and industrial pollution.

9. What other dangers do peat bogs face apart from peat cutting?
Afforestation
Trees being planted in the area can badly damage a peat bog.
Farming
Converting peat bogs to farmland by draining and fertilizing the land.
Burning
Every year peat bogs are deliberately burned, often in an attempt to improve the quality of grazing, or control vegetation growth.
Drainage
Peat bogs drained of water deliberately so the land can be used for another purpose.
Discuss in groups.

10. As scientific studies progress we could unlock further important information from our past which is hidden in the peat bogs.
Destroying them removes a link to our past.

11. How can we create an in classroom peat bog
How can we create an in classroom peat bog? Think about what a peat bog is made up of and how we could create those conditions in class.
What would we need to create a peat bog?

12. Things you may need
Plastic sack
Plastic sheet
Large container
Gravel
Stones
Peat free compost
Moss
Plants that like boggy conditions
Water

13. If we build our peat bog how do we measure our success?

14. Extension task
Create a poster explaining why it is so important to protect the peat bogs.