DEMO-SITE C
Poland
Kuwasy pilot site in Biebrza (PL)
Main crop
Sedges
Other crops
Typha
Responsible Partner
Key information
Challenges
At least 50% of the total peatland area is in the agricultural sector (737 000 ha), mainly managed as drained permanent grassland and pastures. GHG emissions from drained peatlands account for about 41% of total emissions from the agriculture sector. Solutions are needed to rapidly reduce these emissions, while preserving the livelihoods of farmers currently managing peatlands. Paludiculture needs to be shown as having potential for scalability, with demonstrated links between growing plants, harvesting biomass and its further commercial use (creating markets for new products).
Solutions
Develop effective finance, organisation and technology solutions for paludiculture while ensuring subsistence and development of local farmer communities. Cultivate cattails, tall sedges and wet meadows as an alternative use of degraded mire and fen ecosystems. Obtain valuable construction and industrial materials, fodder and soil substrate (horticultural substrate) from the biomass of the crops.
Outcomes
5 proposals for growing plants or restoring plant communities on a demo site of 90 ha. Knowledge on GHG balance, migration of nutrients in water and soil, changes in biodiversity indicators, dynamics of physical and chemical transformations in organic soils, and effectiveness of various paludiculture types in Central European peatlands.
Replicability
Proposed solutions have lowest possible costs and financial outlays, to encourage further dissemination in Poland and other nearby countries. A facility close to the largest national park with wetland habitats allows development of new solutions (e.g. biomass harvest and processing), to be implemented in protective activities of wetland ecosystems. Current infrastructure and supporting organisations allow long-term observations and experiments.
