A Tale of Two Roads: Consequences of Peat Conditions and Construction Practices on Peatland Effects, Reclaimability, and Best Practice Development

Authors
Terry Osko
Contacts
Resource Date:
January
2016

Peatlands vary with respect to peat depth, water content, and other physical characteristics. As such, construction of industrial infrastructure on peatlands poses varied risks and leads to varying consequences depending on the nature of the peat and on construction practices applied. Two peatland road reclamation projects are described. One road was constructed on deep peat with a large amount of peat-displacing fill, while the other was constructed on shallower peat with less fill that was properly “floated” on the peat surface. While both roads impeded natural drainage, they differed in how well they could be reclaimed and how completely their effects could be removed from the peatland. This talk explores these differences, focusing on how such information should inform future road construction decisions, including avoidance and mitigation of effects by evaluating where roads should be built and what practices should be used given the peat conditions encountered.