TURBA: JARDINERÍA VS. AMBIENTE
EL SUELO BRITÁNICO, CAMPO DE BATALLA POR LA TURBA, EN DEFENSA DE LOS
HUMEDALES.
(de un artículo por ELISABETH ROSENTHAL publicado:
Oct. 6, 2012 en [AboveTheFold@newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org]; Oct. 7,
2012) ENGLISH VERSION BELOW
DICKLEBURGH,
Inglaterra – Mientras muchos jardineros consideran a la materia vegetal
parcialmente descompuesta que llaman turba como un mágico elixir, los
ambientalistas dicen que su uso es problemático porque es rascada de la parte
superior de humedales centenarios, los que son ecosistemas vitales que también
sirven como depósitos naturales de carbón, igual que las forestas tropicales.
El
debate entre la industria de la jardinería y los ambientalistas se hizo tan
acerbo que el gobierno nombró un equipo de trabajo de emergencia sobre turba (emergency peat task force)
que el año pasado anunció un plan de eliminación gradual, y este verano (boreal)
produjo un primer informe (first
report).
Detrás
de este drama Británico único hay un grave problema ambiental global, uno que
es mayormente ignorado el los EEUU y en la mayor parte de Europa, donde se usa tierra
fértil envasada con un alto porcentaje de turba para macetas o para distribuir
libremente en parques y jardines como compost para acondicionar el suelo.
“La
gente camina sobre tierras de turba, pero ignoran cuán importante son desde el
punto de vista del cambio climático”, dijo Ian Crosher, un científico de Natural England, organismo
que aconseja al gobierno en materias ambientales, y que apoya la limitación de
uso de la turba. “Las turberas tienen más capacidad de almacenaje de CO2 que
las selvas tropicales. Las turberas son las selvas tropicales de Inglaterra”. Removiendo
las turberas se liberan algunas de las emisiones que almacenan.
Las
turberas son también un precioso hábitat natural Británico, amado por los
caminantes y algunos pájaros amenazados de extinción. Muchas turberas
Británicas se encuentran seriamente degradadas porque han sido drenadas para
recolectar material de jardinería o para hacer espacio para desarrollos
urbanos. Y dado que una turbera activa crece menos de una pulgada en un siglo, ellas
no son renovables desde un punto de vista práctico. Mientras que las empresas
de la industria de los jardines hablan de “cosechar” turba como implicando que
la misma “va a volver” el año próximo, los ambientalistas opositores se
refieren al proceso como “minería”.
En
Inglaterra se obtiene turba parcialmente de turberas domésticas, pero casi toda
viene de Irlanda, donde es usada como combustible en algunas casas rurales,
como lo ha estado siendo por siglos. Por su parte Canadá provee la mayor parte
de la turba vendida en los EEUU.
Reconociendo
que los productos de jardinería que se están ofreciendo sin el uso de turba
varían mucho en calidad, el gobierno está desarrollando un cronograma que
establece que la turba que se usa en los parques Británicos dejará de usarse
para el 2015, la que se usa en la jardinertía doméstica lo será en el 2020, y
en cultivos comerciales para el 2030.
Artículo
completo (en Inglés): http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/science/earth/british-gardeners-battle-over-peat-for-bogs-sake.html?_r=1&ref=world
(N. del
E.: Este tema es importante también para la Argentina, cuyas concidas turberas
australes son limitadas)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BRITISH SOIL IS BATTLEFIELD OVER PEAT, FOR BOGS’ SAKE (from an article by ELISABETH ROSENTHAL Published: October 6, 2012 [AboveTheFold@newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org]; Oct. 7, 2012) Image: maddenbros.com; wikipedia.org
DICKLEBURGH, England - While many gardeners regard the partially decomposed plant matter known as peat as an almost magical elixir, environmentalists say using it is problematic because it is scraped off the tops of centuries-old bogs, which are vital ecosystems that also serve as natural stores of carbon, just like rain forests.
The debate between the gardening industry and environmentalists grew so acerbic that the government appointed an emergency peat task force after the phaseout plan was announced last year, which delivered a first report this summer.
Behind this uniquely British drama is a serious global environmental issue, one largely ignored in the United States and most of Europe, where bagged soils with a high percentage of peat are widely used in potting and sprinkled willy-nilly on gardens and parks as compost or to condition soil.
“People walk over peat lands, but they’re not aware of how important they are from a climate-change point of view,” said Ian Crosher, a scientist with Natural England, which advises the government on the environment, and supports a ban. “Peat bogs have far greater capacity to store CO2 than rain forests. Peat bogs are England’s rain forests.” Disrupting a peat bog releases some of the emissions it holds.
Bogs are also a precious natural habitat in Britain, favored by hikers and some threatened birds. Many British bogs are seriously degraded because they have been drained to take out gardening material or to make way for development. And because even a healthy bog adds less than half an inch in a century, they are not renewable from a practical standpoint. While gardening companies refer to “harvesting” peat, with the implication that it will return next year, environmental opponents refer to the process as “mining.”
In England, peat is obtained partly from domestic bogs but mainly from Ireland, where it is still burned to heat some rural homes, as it has been for centuries. Canada supplies most of the peat sold in the United States.
Acknowledging that current peat-free products vary widely in quality, the government is developing new industry standards to encourage more gardeners to switch. The government timetable calls for an end to peat use in British public parks and gardens by 2015, in backyard gardening by 2020 and in commercial plant growing by 2030.
Full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/science/earth/british-gardeners-battle-over-peat-for-bogs-sake.html?_r=1&ref=world
(N. of the E.: This problem is also important in Argentina, where the known peat bogs of Tierra del Fuego are quite limited).
BRITISH SOIL IS BATTLEFIELD OVER PEAT, FOR BOGS’ SAKE (from an article by ELISABETH ROSENTHAL Published: October 6, 2012 [AboveTheFold@newsletters.environmentalhealthnews.org]; Oct. 7, 2012) Image: maddenbros.com; wikipedia.org
DICKLEBURGH, England - While many gardeners regard the partially decomposed plant matter known as peat as an almost magical elixir, environmentalists say using it is problematic because it is scraped off the tops of centuries-old bogs, which are vital ecosystems that also serve as natural stores of carbon, just like rain forests.
The debate between the gardening industry and environmentalists grew so acerbic that the government appointed an emergency peat task force after the phaseout plan was announced last year, which delivered a first report this summer.
Behind this uniquely British drama is a serious global environmental issue, one largely ignored in the United States and most of Europe, where bagged soils with a high percentage of peat are widely used in potting and sprinkled willy-nilly on gardens and parks as compost or to condition soil.
“People walk over peat lands, but they’re not aware of how important they are from a climate-change point of view,” said Ian Crosher, a scientist with Natural England, which advises the government on the environment, and supports a ban. “Peat bogs have far greater capacity to store CO2 than rain forests. Peat bogs are England’s rain forests.” Disrupting a peat bog releases some of the emissions it holds.
Bogs are also a precious natural habitat in Britain, favored by hikers and some threatened birds. Many British bogs are seriously degraded because they have been drained to take out gardening material or to make way for development. And because even a healthy bog adds less than half an inch in a century, they are not renewable from a practical standpoint. While gardening companies refer to “harvesting” peat, with the implication that it will return next year, environmental opponents refer to the process as “mining.”
In England, peat is obtained partly from domestic bogs but mainly from Ireland, where it is still burned to heat some rural homes, as it has been for centuries. Canada supplies most of the peat sold in the United States.
Acknowledging that current peat-free products vary widely in quality, the government is developing new industry standards to encourage more gardeners to switch. The government timetable calls for an end to peat use in British public parks and gardens by 2015, in backyard gardening by 2020 and in commercial plant growing by 2030.
Full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/science/earth/british-gardeners-battle-over-peat-for-bogs-sake.html?_r=1&ref=world
(N. of the E.: This problem is also important in Argentina, where the known peat bogs of Tierra del Fuego are quite limited).
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