Bord na Móna (lit.
Peat Board) is a semi-state company in the
Ireland, created in 1946 by the
Turf Development Act, 1946 The company is responsible for the mechanised harvesting of
peat, primarily in the Midlands of
Ireland. Extensive
bogland is exploited in
County Offaly,
County Longford and
County Westmeath, mainly the
Bog of Allen.
History
The company was originally established in 1933 as the
Turf Development Board, Limited, to manage this relatively plentiful
natural resource. During
WWII it was necessary to stockpile peat as a fuel, as
coal was in short supply; this cemented the drive for mechanised peat harvesting.
Harvesting
Peat was traditionally manually harvested by operating
cutaway bogs. This method (still privately used today) consists of sods being vertically cut from the side face of a peat deposit. Technology was derived to mechanically cut and remove layers of peat from
blanket bogs. Today, equipment is used to remove tonnes of peat each day at suitable times of year (rainfall is a significant variable in peat harvesting).
Bord na Móna have developed a number of products which were novel developments in their time. Today peat briquettes replace sods of raw peat as a domestic fuel. These briquettes consist of shredded peat, compressed to form a virtually smokeless (once lit), slow-burning, easily stored and transported fuel. Another product developed was peat moss, a combination of peat and soil for use in the garden - particularly in pot plants. The company also supplies peat to power stations of the Electricity Supply Board.
Railways
An extensive network of
narrow gauge railways is operated by the company in the midlands. It is often taken up and relaid as various plots are harvested or left aside. Some smaller sections of railway are used in other bog locations, for example in
County Donegal. Bord na Móna has an extensive 2000 km (1200 mile) network, which has carried up to 5 million tonnes annually, and is larger than the
main network (passenger and freight) operated by
Iarnród Éireann. Bord na Móna has one of the largest industrial railways in
Europe.
Part of the old railway in Clonmacnoise, County Offaly is now the Clonmacnoise and West Offaly Railway (colloquially the "Bog Train") having been set up to give the public a tour around part of the bog. One line of the railway system runs along a section of the former Ballinasloe branch canal. This includes a section where the railway runs through Kylemore Lough.
Land reclamation
The company is responsible, under government action, for reclaiming spent bogland. These areas of land are usually cleared up, with trees or other suitable vegetation being introduced. Reclaimed bogland is then usually used as a
wildlife preserve. Much of the bogs of Ireland have been depleted, it is likely that most peat-fired electricity stations will be closed within 25 years.
Rhode Power Station near
Edenderry, had its
cooling towers demolished on 16
March 2004 as it was no longer viable, followed by
Bellacorick in north
County Mayo on 14
October 2007.
See also
External links
